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A 

COLLECTION 


_ 

.  c.  zzi7zcx 

FACTS  AND  DOCUMENTS, 

RELATIVE    TO 

THE    DEATH 

OF 

Hamilton; 

WITH  COMMENTS  : 

TOGETHER  WITH  THE  VARIOUS 

ORATIONS,  SERMONS,  AND  EULOGIES, 

THAT    HAVE    BEEN    PUBLISHED    OR    WRITTEN    OS 

LIFE  AJVD  CHARACTER. 


Quoad  humanum  genus  incolume  manserit,  quamdiu  usus  literis,  honor 
summae  eloquent! x  pretium  erit,  quamdiu  rerum  natura  aut  fortuna  steterit, 
aut  memoriaduraverit,  admirabile,  posteris  vigebis  ingenium. 

AURELIUSFUSCUS. 


fir  THE  EDITOR  GF,t 


PRINTED   BY  HOPKINS  AND  SEYMOUR, 

FOR   I.  RILKY  AND  CO.  BOOKSELLERS,  NO.  1,  CITY-HOTEL, 
BROADWAY. 

1804. 


District  of  New-York,  ss. 

IT  REMEMBERED,  That  on  the  twentieth  day  of  Au- 
(L.  s  )  £ust)  *n  t^ie  twent7-nmtn  year  of  the  Independence  of 
the  United  States  of  America,  ISAAC  RILEIT,  of  the 
said  District,  hath  deposited  in  this  office  the  title  of  a  Book, 
the  right  whereof  he  claims  as^proprietor,  in  the  words  following, 
to  wit : 

* '  A  Collection  of  the  Facts  aud  Documents  relative  to  the  Death  of 
«'  Major-General  Alexander  Hamilton;  with  comments:  together  with 
«•  the  various  Orations,  Sermons,  and  Eulogies,  that  have  been  published 
««  or  written  on  his  Life  and  Character. 

"  Quoad  humanum  genus  incolume  manserir,  quamdiu  usus  literis,  honor 
"  summae  eloquentiae  pretium  erit,  quamdiu  rerum  natura  aut  fortuna  ste- 
"  terit,  aut  memoria  duraverit,  admirabile,  posteris  vigebis  ingenium.-~ 
'*  Aurelius  Fuscus. 

"  By  the  Editor  of  the  Evening  Post.1' 

IN  conformity  to  the  Act  of  the  Congress  of  the  United  States, 
entitled,  "  An  Act  for  the  encouragement  of  Learning,  by  se- 
"  curing  the  copies  of  Maps,  Charts,  and  Books,  to  the  Authors 
"  and  Proprietors  of  such  copies,  during  the  times  therein  men- 
"tioned."--  '  .  ^  . 

V  ;  ;   "EDWARD  DUNSCOMB, 
;       *  •  •*:      Clerk  of  the  District  of  New-York. 


PREFACE. 


THIS  Collection  of  Papers,  and  the  comments  and  remarks 
which  will  occasionally  accompany  them,  are  offered  to  the  public 
no  less  in  gratification  of  my  own  feelings,  than  in  compliance 
with  the  request  of  those  whose  wishes  I  have  long  been  accus- 
tomed to  respect. 

IN  the  death  of  HAMILTON,!  have  lost  my  best  earthly  friend, 
my  ablest  adviser,  and  my  most  generous  and  disinterested  pa- 
tron. And  all  that  is  now  left  me,  is  to  pour  forth  my  grati- 
tude in  unavailing  sorrow  ;  and  to  evince  my  regard  for  his  me- 
mory, by  defending  it  against  the  cruel  attacks  of  those,  who, 
not  contented  with  having  deprived  him  of  his  life,  seem  bent  on 
pursuing  him  beyond  the  grave,  and  destroying  his  fame.  A 
belief  is  confidently  indulged,  that  when  this  series  of  Numbers 
shall  be  completed,  enough  will  have  appeared  to  silence  the 
voice  of  calumny  forever. 

THIS  Collection  will  contain  all  the  documents  and  publica- 
tions, which,  it  is  presumed,  the  friends  of  General  HAMILTON 
would  wish  to  see  preserved  in  a  more  permanent  form  than  that 
of  a  Gazette.  Most  ot  the  papers  and  facts  have,  indeed,  already 
appeared  ;  but  some  things  of  a  very  interesting  nature  are  now 
for  the  first  time  published ;  and  the  remarks  on  the  Corres- 
pondence and  circumstances  connected  with  the  fatal  event,  will 
be  found  to  have  been  materially  revised,  corrected,  and  me- 
thodized, since  their  first  hasty  appearance  in  the  Evening  Post. 


332001 


A  COLLECTION, 


IN  the  following  pages  will  be  found  a  satisfactory  account 
of  the  shocking  catastrophe  which  has  deprived  America 
of  her  most  valuable  citizen,  and  our  age  of  the  greatest 
man  ;  together  with  some  brief  remarks,  calculated  to  place 
the  melancholy  affair  in  its  true  light,  both  as  it  respects  the 
deceased,  and  him  by  whose  arm  he  was  slain. 

PERHAPS  the  most  satisfactory  manner  of  introducing  the 
reader  to  his  subject,  will  be  to  begin  with  the  Correspondence 
which  led  to  the  fatal  interview.  It  follows  : 

/N°.  I. 

New-Tor k,  June  18,  18O4. 
SIR, 

I  SEND  for  your  perusal  a  letter  signed  Charles  D. 
Cooper,  which,  though  apparently  published  some  time 
ago,  has  but  very  recently  come  to  my  knowledge.  Mr, 
Van  Ness,  who  does  me  the  favour  to  deliver  this,  will 
point  out  to  you  that  clause  of  the  letter  to  which  I  particu* 
larly  request  your  attention. 

You  must  perceive,  Sir,  the  necessity  of  a  prompt  and 
unqualified  acknowledgment  or  denial  of  the  use  of  any  ex, 
pression  which  would  warrant  the  assertions  of  Dr.  Cooper, 

I  have  the  honour  to  be, 

Your  obedient  serv't, 

A.  BURR* 

General  HAMILTON. 


(2) 
.  II. 


New-Tor  k,  June  20,  1804. 
SIR, 

I  HAVE  maturely  reflected  on  the  subject  of  your  letter  of 
the.  18th  inst.  and  the  more  I  have  reflected  the  more  I  have 
become  convinced,  that  I  could  not,  without  manifest  im- 
propriety, make  the  avowal  or  disavowal  which  you  seem  to 
think  necessarv^  The  clause  pointed  out  by  Mr.  Van  Ness 
is  in  these  terms  :  "  I  could  detail  to  you  a  still  more  despi- 
cable opinion  which  General  Hamilton  has  expressed  of  Mr. 
Burr."  To  endeavour  to  discover  the  meaning  of  this 
declaration,  I  was  obliged  to  seek  in  the  antecedent  part  of 
this  letter  for  the  opinion  to  which  it  referred,  as  having 
been  already  disclosed.  I  found  it  in  these  words  :  "  Ge- 
neral Hamilton  and  Judge  Kent  have  declared  in  substance, 
that  they  looked  upon  Mr.  Burr  to  be  a  dangerous  man,  and 
one  who  ought  not  to  be  trusted  with  the  reins  of  govern- 
ment." 

THE  language  of  Dr.  Cooper  plainly  implies,  that  he  con- 
sidered  this  opinion  of  you,  which  he  attributes  to  me  as  a 
despicable  one  ;  but  he  affirms  that  I  have  expressed  some 
other,  more  despicable,  without,  however,  mentioning  to 
whom,  when,  or  where.  ?Tis  evident  that  the  phrase, 
"  still  more  despicable,"  admits  of  infinite  shades,  from  very- 
light  to  very  dark.  How  am  I  to  judge  of  the  degree  in- 
tended ?  or  how  shall  I  annex  any  precise  idea  to  language 
so  indefinite? 

BETWEEN  gentlemen,  despicable  and  more  despicable  are 
not  worth  the  pains  of  distinction  :  when  therefore  you  do 
not  interrogate  me,  as  to  the  opinion  which  is  specifically 
ascribed  to  me,  I  must  conclude,  that  you  view  it  as  within 


(3) 

the  limits  to  which  the  animadversions  of  political  opponents 
upon  each  other  may  justifiably  extend,  and  consequently  as 
not  warranting  the  idea  of  it  which  Doctor  Cooper  appears 
to  entertain.  If  so,  what  precise  inference  could  you  draw, 
as  a  guide  for  your  conduct,  were  I  to  acknowledge  that  I 
had  expressed  an  opinion  of  you  still  more  despicable  than  the 
one  which  is  particularized  ?  How  could  you  be  sure  that 
even  this  opinion  had  exceeded  the  bounds  which  you  would 
yourself  deem  admissible  between  political  opponents  ? 

BUT  I  forbear  further  comment  on  the  embarrassment,  to 
which  the  requisition  you  have  made  naturally  leads.     The 
V       occasion  forbids  a  more  ample  illustration,  though  nothing 
could  be  more  easy  than  to  pursue  it. 

REPEATING  that  I  cannot  reconcile  it  with  propriety  to 
make  the  acknowledgment  or  denial  you  desire,  I  will  add 
that  I  deem  it  inadmissible  on  principle,  to  consent  to  be  in- 
terrogated as  to  the  justness  of  the  inferences  which  may  be 
drawn  by  others  from  whatever  I  may  have  said  of  a  po- 
litical opponent,  in  the  course  of  fifteen  years  competition.  If 
there  were  no  other  objection  to  it  this  is  sufficient,  that  it 
would  tend  to  expose  my  sincerity  and  delicacy  to  injurious 
imputations  from  every  person  who  may  at  any  time  have 
conceived  the  import  of  my  expressions,  differently  from 
what  I  may  then  have  intended  or  may  afterwards  recollect. 
I  stand  ready  to  avow  or  disavow  promptly  and  explicitly  any 
precise  or  definite  opinion  which  I  may  be  charged  with 
having  declared  of  any  Gentleman.  More  than  this  cannot 
fitly  be  expected  from  me  j  and  especially  it  cannot  be  reason- 
ably expected  that  I  shall  enter  into  an  explanation  upon  a 
basis  so  vague  as  that  which  you  have  adopted.  I  trust  on 
more  reflection  you  will  see  the  matter  in  the  same  light  vp& 


me.     If  not,  I  can  only  regret  the  circumstance  and  must 
abide  the  consequences. 

THE  publication  of   Doctor  Cooper  was  never  seen  by 
me  till  after  the  receipt  of  your  letter. 

I  have  the  honour  to  be,  &c. 

A.  HAMILTON. 

Col.  BURR. 


N°.  III. 

New-York,  21st  June,  1804. 
SIR, 

YOUR  letter  of  the  20th  instant  has  been  this  day  receiv- 
ed. Having  considered  it  attentively,  I  regret  to  find  in  it 
nothing  of  that  sincerity  and  delicacy  which  you  profess  to 
value. 

POLITICAL  opposition  can  never  absolve  gentlemen  from 
the  necessity  of  a  rigid  adherence  to  the  laws  of  honour,  and 
the  rules  of  decorum.  I  neither  claim  such  privilege  nor 
indulge  it  in  others. 

THE  common  sense  of  mankind  affixes  to  the  epithet  adopt- 
ed by  Dr.  Cooper,  the  idea  of  dishonour.  It  has  been 
publicly  applied  to  me  under  the  sanction  of  your  name. 
The  question  is  not,  whether  he  has  understood  the  mean- 
ing of  the  word,  or  has  used  it  according  to  syntax,  and  with 
grammatical  accuracy  ;  but,  whether  you  have  authorized 
this  application,  either  directly  or  by  uttering  expressions  or 
opinions  derogatory  to  my  honour.  The  time  "  when''  is  in 


CO 

vour  own  knowledge,  but  no  way  material  to  me,  as  the 
calumny  has  now  first  been  disclosed,  so  as  to  become  the 
subject  of  my  notice,  and  as  the  effect  is  present  and  palpa- 
ble. 

YOUR  letter  has  furnished  me  with  new  reasons  for  requir- 
ing a  definite  reply. 

I  have  the  honour  to  be, 

Sir,  your  obedient, 

A.  BURR. 

General  HAMILTON. 


ON  Saturday  the  22d  of  June,  General  Hamilton,  for 
the  first  time,  called  on  Mr.  Pendleton  and  communicated  to 
him  the  preceding  correspondence.  He  informed  him  that 
in  a  conversation  with  Mr.  Van  Ness  at  the  time  of  receiv- 
ing the  last  letter,  he  told  Mr.  Van  Ness  that  he  considered 
that  letter  as  rude  and  offensive,  and  that  it  was  not  possible 
for  him  to  give  it  any  other  answer  than  that  Mr.  Burr  must 
take  such  steps  as  he  might  think  proper.  He  said  farther, 
that  Mr.  Van  Ness  requested  him  to  take  time  to  delibe- 
rate, and  then  return  an  answer,  when  he  might  possibly  en- 
tertain a  different  opinion,  and  that  he  would  call  on  him 
to  receive  it.  That  his  reply  to  Mr.  Van  Ness  was,  that 
he  did  not  perceive  it  possible  for  him  to  give  any  other  an- 
swer than  that  he  had  mentioned,  unless  Mr.  Burr  would 
take  back  his  last  letter  and  write  one  which  would  admit  of 
a  different  reply.  He  then  gave  Mr.  Pendleton  the  letter 
hereafter  mentioned  of  the  22d  of  June,  to  be  delivered  to 


(6) 

Mr.  Van  Ness  when  he  should  call  on  Mr.  Pendleton  for  an 
answer,  and  went  to  his  country  house. 

THE  next  day  General  Hamilton  received,  while  there, 
the  following  letter. 


N°.  IV. 

June  23</,  1804. 
SIR, 

IN  the  afternoon  of  yesterday,  I  reported  to  Col.  Burr 
the  result  of  my  last  interview  with  you,  and  appointed  the 
evening  to  receive  his  further  instructions.  Some  private 
engagements,  however,  prevented  me  from  calling  on  him 
till  this  morning.  On  my  return  to  the  city,  I  found  upon 
inquiry,  both  at  your  office  and  house,  that  you  had 
returned  to  your  residence  in  the  country.  Lest  an  inter- 
view there  might  be  less  agreeable  to  you  than  elsewhere,  I 
have  taken  the  liberty  of  addressing  you  this  note  to  inquire 
•when  and  where  it  will  be  most  convenient  to  you  to  receive 
a  communication. 

Your  most  obedient  and  very  humble  servant, 

W.P.VAN  NESS. 
General  HAMILTON. 


Mr.  Pendleton  understood  from  General  Hamilton  that  he 
immediately  answered,  that  if  the  communication  was  pres- 
sing he  would  receive  it  at  his  country  house  that  day ;  if 


not,  he  would  be  at  his  house  in  town  the  next  morning  at 
nine  o'clock.  But  he  did  not  give  Mr.  Pendleton  any  copy 
of  this  note. 


N°.V. 

New-Tort,  June  22,  1804. 
Sin, 

YOUR  first  letter,  in  a  style  too  peremptory,  made  a  de- 
mand, in  my  opinion,  unprecedented  and  unwarrantable. 
My  answer,  pointing  out  the  embarrassment,  gave  you  an 
opportunity  to  take  a  less  exceptionable  course.  You  have 
not  chosen  to  do  it ;  but  by  your  last  letter  received  this  day, 
containing  expressions  indecorous  and  improper,  you  have 
increased  the  difficulties  to  explanation  intrinsically  incident 
to  the  nature  of  your  application. 

IF  by  a  "  definite  reply,"  you  mean  the  direct  avowal  or 
disavowal  required  in  your  first  letter,  I  have  no  other  an- 
swer to  give,  than  that  which  has  already  been  given.  If 
you  mean  any  thing  different,  admitting  of  greater  latitude, 
it  is  requisite  you  should  explain. 

I  have  the  honour  to  be, 

Sir,  your  obedient  servant, 

ALEX.  HAMILTON. 

AARON  BURR,  Esq. 


THIS  letter,  although  dated  on  the  23d  June,  remained 
in  Mr.  Pendleton's  possession  until  the  25th,  within  which 


(8) 

period  he  had  several  conversations  with  Mr.  Van  Ness.  In 
these  conversations  Mr.  Pendleton  endeavoured  to  illustrate 
and  enforce  the  propriety  of  the  ground  General  Hamilton 
had  taken.  Mr.  Pendleton  mentioned  to  Mr.  Van  Ness  as 
the  result,  that  if  Col.  Burr  would  write  a  letter,  requesting 
to  know  in  substance  whether  in  the  conversation  to  which 
Dr.  Cooper  alluded,  any  particular  instance  of  dishonourable 
conduct  was  imputed  to  Col.  Burr,  or  whether  there  was 
any  impeachment  of  his  private  character,  Gen.  Hamilton 
would  declare  to  the  best  of  his  recollection  what  passed  in 
that  conversation :  and  Mr.  Pendleton  read  to  Mr.  Van 
Ness  a  paper  containing  the  substance  of  what  Gen.  Hamil- 
ton would  say  on  that  subject,  which  is  as  follows. 


N°.  VI. 

"  GENERAL  Hamilton  says  he  cannot  imagine  to  what 
Dr.  Cooper  may  have  alluded,  unless  it  were  to  a  conversation 
at  Mr.  Taylor's  in  Albany,  last  winter,  (at  which  he  and 
Gen.  Hamilton  were  present).  Gen.  Hamilton  cannot  recol- 
lect distinctly  the  particulars  of  that  conversation  so  as  to  un- 
dertake to  repeat  them,  without  running  the  risk  of  varying, 
or  omitting  what  might  be  deemed  important  circumstances. 
The  expressions  are  entirely  forgotten,  and  the  specific  ideas 
imperfectly  remembered  ;  but  to  the  best  of  his  recollection 
it  consisted  of  comments  on  the  political  principles  and  views 
of  Col.  Burr,  and  the  results  that  might  be  expected  from  them 
in  the  event  of  his  election  as  Governor,  without  reference  to 
any  particular  instance  of  past  conduct,  or  to  private  character." 

AFTER  the  delivery  of  the  letter  of  the  22d,  as  above 
mentioned;  in  another  interview  with  Mr.  Van  Ness  he 


(    9    ) 

desired  Mr.  Pendleton  to  give  him  in  writing  the  substance 
of  what  he  had  proposed  on  the  part  of  General  Hamilton, 
which  Mr.  Pendleton  did  in  the  words  following. 


NO.  VII. 

"  IN  answer  to  a  letter  properly  adapted  to  obtain  from 
General  Hamilton  a  declaration  whether  he  had  charged 
Col.  Burr  with  any  particular  instance  of  dishonourable  con- 
duct, or  had  impeached  his  private  character,  either  in  the 
conversation  alluded  to  by  Dr.  Cooper,  or  in  any  other  par- 
ticular instance  to  be  specified  ;  he  would  be  able  to  answer 
consistently  with  his  honour,  and  the  truth,  in  substance,  that 
the  conversation  to  which  Dr.  Cooper  alluded,  turned 
wholly  on  political  topics,  and  did  not  attribute  to  Col.  Burr 
any  instance  of  dishonourable  conduct,  nor  relate  to  his  pri- 
vate character;  and  in  relation  to  any  other  language  or 
conversation  of  General  Hamilton  which  Col.  Burr  will  speci- 
fy, a  prompt  and  frank  avowal  or  denial  will  be  given." 

ON  the  26th  June  Mr.  Pendleton  received  the  following 
letter. 


N°.  VIII. 

SIR, 

THE  letter  which  you  yesterday  delivered  me,  and  your 
subsequent  communication,  in  Col.  Burr's  opinion,  evince 
no  disposition  on  the  part  of  Gen.  Hamilton  to  come  to  a 
satisfactory  accommodation.  The  injury  complained  of 
and  the  reparation  expected,  are  so  definitely  expressed  in 

c 


Col.  Burr's  letter  of  the  21st  instant,  that  there  is  not  per- 
ceived a  necessity  for  further  explanation  on  his  part.  The 
difficulty  that  would  result  from  confining  the  inquiry  to  any 
particular  times  and  occasions  must  be  manifest.  The  de- 
nial of  a  specified  conversation  only,  would  leave  strong  im- 
plications that  on  other  occasions  improper  language  had  been 
used — When  and  where  injurious  opinions  and  expressions 
have  been  uttered  by  Gen.  Hamilton  must  be  best  known 
to  him,  and  of  him  only  will  Col.  Burr  inquire.  No  denial 
or  declaration  "will  be  satisfactory,  unless  it  be  general,  so  as 
wholly  to  exclude  the  idea  that  rumours  derogatory  to  Colonel 
Burros  honour  have  originated  with  General  Hamilton,  or 
have  been  fairly  inferred  from  any  thing  he  has  said.  A 
definite  reply  to  a  requisition  of  this  nature  was  demanded 
by  Col.  Burr's  letter  of  the  21st  instant.  This  being  refus- 
ed, invites  the  alternative  alluded  to  in  Gen*  Hamilton's 
letter  of  the  20th. 

IT  was  required  by  the  position  in  which  the  controversy 
was  placed  by  Gen.  Hamilton  on  Friday  *  last,  and  I  was 
immediately  fumished  with  a  communication  demanding  a 
personal  interview.  The  necessity  of  this  measure  has  not^ 
in  the  opinion  of  Col.  Burr,  been  diminished  by  the  Gene- 
ral's last  letter,  or  any  communication  which  has  since  been 
received.  I  am  consequently  again  instructed  to  deliver 
you  a  message,  as  soon  as  it  may  be  convenient  for  you  to 
receive  it.  I  beg  therefore  you  will  be  so  good  as  to  in- 
form me  at  what  hour  I  can  have  the  pleasure  of  seeing  you. 

Your  most  obedient,  and 

very  humble  servant, 

W.  P.  VAN  NESS, 
NATHANIEL  PENDLETON,  Esq. 
June  26th. 

*  June  22d. 


(11 ) 

N°.   IX. 

26th  June,  1804. 
SIR, 

I  HAVE  communicated  the  letter  which  you  did  me  the 
-honour  to  write  to  me  of  this  date,  to  Gen.  Hamilton.  The 
expectations  now  disclosed  on  the  part  of  Col.  Burr  appear 
to  him  to  have  greatly  extended  the  original  ground  of  in- 
quiry, and  instead  of  presenting  a  particular  and  definite 
case  for  explanation,  seem  to  aim  at  nothing  less  than  an  in- 
quisition into  his  most  confidential  conversations,  as  well  as 
others,  through  the  whole  period  of  his  acquaintance  with 
Col.  Burr. 

WHILE  he  was  prepared  to  meet  the  particular  case  fairly 
and  fully,  he  thinks  it  inadmissible  that  he  should  be  expect- 
ed to  answer  at  large  as  to  every  thing  that  he  may  possibly 
have  said,  in  relation  to  the  character  of  Col.  Burr,  at  any 
time  or  upon  any  occasion.  Though  he  is  not  conscious  that 
any  charges  which  are  in  circulation  to  the  prejudice  of  Col. 
Burr  have  originated  with  him,  except  one  which  may  have 
been  so  considered,  and  which  has  long  since  been  fully  ex- 
plained between  Col.  Burr  and  himself — yet  he  cannot  con- 
sent to  be  questioned  generally  as  to  any  rumours  which  may 
be  afloat  derogatory  to  the  character  of  Col.  Burr,  without 
specification  of  the  several  rumours,  many  of  them  probably 
unknown  to  him.  He  does  not,  however,  mean  to  authorize 
any  conclusion  as  to  the  real  nature  of  his  conduct  in  relation 
to  Col.  Burr,  by  his  declining  so  loose  and  vague  a  basis  of 
explanation,  and  he  disavows  an  unwillingness  to  come  to  a 
satisfactory,  provided  it  be  an  honourable,  accommodation. 
His  objection  is,  the  very  indefinite  ground  which  Col. 
Burr  has  assumed,  in  which  he  is  sorry  to  be  able  to  discern 
^nothing  short  of  predetermined  hostility.  Presuming  there* 


(  12) 

fore  that  it  will  be  adhered  to,  he  has  instructed  me  to  re- 
ceive the  message  which  you  have  it  in  charge  to  deliver. 
For  this  purpose  I  shall  be  at  home  and  at  your  command 
to-morrow  morning  from  eight  to  ten  o'clock. 

I  have  the  honour  to  be,  respectfully, 

Your  obedient  servant, 
NATHANIEL  PENDLETON. 

WILLIAM  P.  VAN  NESS,  Esq. 


N°.  X. 
SIR, 

THE  letter  which  I  had  the  honour  to  receive  from  you, 
under  date  of  yesterday,  states,  among  other  things,  that  in 
Gen.  Hamilton's  opinion,  Col.  Burr  has  taken  a  very  in- 
definite ground,  in  which  he  evinces  nothing  short  of  prede- 
termined hostility,  and  that  Gen.  Hamilton  thinks  it  inad- 
missible that  the  inquiry  should  extend  to  his  confidential  as 
well  as  other  conversations.  In  this  Col.  Burr  can  only  re- 
ply, that  secret  whispers  traducing  his  fame,  and  impeach- 
ing his  honour,  are,  at  least,  equally  injurious  with  slan- 
ders publicly  uttered  ;  that  Gen.  Hamilton  had,  at  no 
time,  and  in  no  place,  a  right  to  use  any  such  injurious  ex- 
pressions ;  and  that  the  partial  negative  he  is  disposed  to 
give,  with  the  reservations  he  wishes  to  make,  are  proofs 
that  he  has  done  the  injury  specified. 

COL.  Burr's  request  was,  in  the  first  instance,  proposed 
in  a  form  the  most  simple,  in  order  that  Gen.  Hamilton 


(13) 

might  give  to  the  affair  that  course  to  which  he  might  be 
induced  by  his  temper  and  his  knowledge  of  facts.  Col. 
Bun*  trusted  with  confidence,  that  from  the  frankness  of  a. 
soldier  and  the  candour  of  a  gentleman,  he  might  expect  an 
ingenuous  declaration.  That  if,  as  he  had  reason  to  believe, 
Gen.  Hamilton  had  used  expressions  derogatory  to  his  ho- 
nour, he  would  have  had  the  magnanimity  to  retract  them  ; 
and  that  if,  from  his  language,  injurious  inferences  had  been 
improperly  drawn,  he  would  have  perceived  the  propriety 
of  correcting  errors,  which  might  thus  have  been  widely 
diffused.  With  these  impressions,  Col.  Burr  was  greatly 
surprised  at  receiving  a  letter  which  he  considered  as  eva- 
sive, and  which  in  manner  he  deemed  not  altogether  deco- 
rous. In  one  expectation,  however,  he  was  not  wholly  de- 
ceived, for  the  close  of  Gen.  Hamilton's  letter  contained 
an  intimation  that  if  Col.  Burr  should  dislike  his  refusal  to 
acknowledge  or  deny,  he  was  ready  to  meet  the  consequen- 
ces. This  Col.  Burr  deemed  a  sort  of  defiance,  and  would 
have  felt  justified  in  making  it  the  basis  of  an  immediate 
message.  But  as  the  communication  contained  something 
concerning  the  indefiniteness  of  the  request;  as  he  believed 
it  rather  the  offspring  of  false  pride  than  of  reflection,  and 
as  he  felt  the  utmost  reluctance  to  proceed  to  extremities, 
while  any  other  hope  remained,  his  request  was  repeated  in 
terms  more  explicit.  The  replies  and  propositions  on  the 
part  of  Gen.  Hamilton  have,  in  Col.  Burr's  opinion,  been 
constantly  in  substance  the  same. 

COL.  Burr  disavows  all  motives  of  predetermined  hostility, 
a  charge  by  which  he  thinks  insult  added  to  injury.  He 
feels  as  a  gentleman  should  feel  when  his  honour  is  impeach- 
ed or  assailed ;  and  without  sensations  of  hostility  or  wishes 
of  revenge,  he  is  determined  to  vindicate  that  honour  at 
such  hazard  as  the  nature  of  the  case  demands. 


(14) 

THE  length  to  which  this  correspondence  has  extended, 
only  tending  to  prove  that  the  satisfactory  redress,  earnestly 
desired,  cannot  be  obtained,  he  deems  it  useless  to  offer 
any  proposition  except  the  simple  message  which  I  shall  now 
have  the  honour  to  deliver. 

I  have  the  honour  to  be  with  great  respect, 
Your  obedient  and  very  humble  servant, 

W.  P.  VAN  NESS. 

Wednesday  Morning,  June  27th,  1804. 

WITH  this  letter  a  message  was  received,  such  as  was  to 
be  expected,  containing  an  invitation  which  was  accepted, 
and  Mr.  Pendleton  informed  Mr,  Van  Ness  he  should  hear 
from  him  the  next  day  as  to  further  particulars. 

THIS  letter  was  delivered  to  General  Hamilton  on  the 
same  evening,  and  a  very  short  conversation  ensued  between 
him  and  Mr.  Pendleton,  who  was  to  call  on  him  early  the  next 
morning  for  a  further  conference.-— When  he  did  so,  Gen. 
Hamilton  said  he  had  not  understood  whether  the  message 
and  answer  was  definitively  concluded,  or  whether  another 
meeting  was  to  take  place  for  that  purpose  between  Mr. 
Pendleton  and  Mr.  Van  Ness.  Under  the  latter  impression, 
and  as  the  last  letter  contained  matter  that  naturally  led  to 
animadversion,  he  gave  Mr.  Pendleton  a  paper  of  remarks 
in  his  own  hand  writing,  to  be  communicated  to  Mr.  Van 
Ness,  if  the  state  of  the  affair  rendered  it  proper. 

IN  an  interview  with  Mr.  Van  Ness  cm  the  same  day,  af- 
ter explaining  the  causes  which  had  induced  Gen.  Hamilton 
to  suppose  that  the  state  of  the  affair  did  not  render  it  im- 


(   15) 

proper,  Mr.  Pendleton'offered  this  paper  to  Mr.  Van  Ness ;. 
but  he  declined  receiving  it,  alleging,  that  he  considered 
the  correspondence  as  closed  by  the  acceptance  of  the  mes- 
sage that  he  had  delivered. 

MR.  Pendleton  then  informed  Mr.  Van  Ness  of  the  in- 
ducements mentioned  by  Gen.  Hamilton  in  the  paper,  for  at 
least  postponing  the  meeting  until  the  close  of  the  Circuit ; 
and  as  this  was  uncertain,  Mr.  Pendleton  was  to  let  him  know 
when  it  would  be  convenient* 

HERE  we  think  it  most  proper  to  introduce  the  paper  itself. 
The  reader  will  form  his  own  judgment  whether  it  was  not 
Mr.  Van  Ness's  duty  to  have  received  it,  and  shown  it  to  his 
principal  j  he  will  probably  exercise  his  own  conjecture  too 
as  to  Mr.  Van  Ness's  motives  for  not  doing  so.  It  follows : 


N°.  XL 

"  Remarks  on  the  letter  of  June  27,  1804. 

"  WHETHER  the  observations  on  this  letter  are  designed 
merely  to  justify  the  result  which  is  indicated  in  the  close 
of  the  letter,  or  may  be  intended  to  give  an  opening  for  ren- 
dering any  thing  explicit  which  may  have  been  deemed 
vague  heretofore,  can  only  be  judged  of  by  the  sequel.  At 
any  rate  it  appears  to  me  necessary  not  to  be  misunderstood. 
Mr.  Pendleton  is  therefore  authorized  to  say,  that  in  the 
course  of  the  present  discussion,  written  or  verbal,  there 
has  been  no  intention  to  evade,  defy,  or  insult,  but  a  sin- 
cere disposition  to  avoid  extremities  if  it  could  be  done  with 
propriety.  With  this  view,  Gen.  Hamilton  has  been  ready  to 
enter  into  a  frank  and  free  explanation  on  any  and  every  ob- 


(16) 

ject  of  a  specific  nature  ;  but  not  to  answer  a  general  and 
abstract  inquiry,  embracing  a  period  too  long  for  any  accu- 
rate recollection,  and  exposing  him  to  unpleasant  criticisms 
from,  or  unpleasant  discussions  with,  any  and  every  person, 
who  may  have  understood  him  in  an  unfavourable  sense. 
This  (admitting  that  he  could  answer  in  a  manner  the  most 
satisfactory  to  Col.  Burr)  he  should  deem  inadmissible,  in 
principle  and  precedent,  and  humiliating  in  practice.  To 
this  therefore  he  can  never  submit.  Frequent  allusion  has 
been  made  to  slanders  said  to  be  in  circulation.  Whether 
they  are  openly  or  in  whispers,  they  have  a  form  and  shape, 
and  might  be  specified. 

"  IF  the  alternative  alluded  to  in  the  close  of  the  letter  is 
definitively  tendered,  it  must  be  accepted  ;  the  time,  place, 
and  manner,  to  be  afterwards  regulated.  I  should  not  think 
it  right  in  the  midst  of  a  Circuit  Court  to  withdraw  my  ser- 
vices from  those  who  may  have  confided  important  interests 
to  me,  and  expose  them  to  the  embarrassment  of  seeking 
other  counsel,  who  may  not  have  time  to  be  sufficiently  in- 
structed in  their  causes.  I  shall  also  want  a  little  time  to 
make  some  arrangements  respecting  my  own  affairs." 


ON  Friday  the  6th  of  July,  the  circuit  being  closed,  Mr« 
Pendleton  informed  Mr.  Van  Ness  that  general  Hamilton 
would  be  ready  at  any  time  after  the  Sunday  following.  On 
Monday  the  particulars  were  arranged — on  Wednesday  the 
parties  met  at  Weahawk,  on  the  Jersey  shore,  at  7  o'clock, 
A.  M. — The  particulars  of  what  then  took  place  will  appear 
from  the  following  statement,  as  agreed  upon  and  corrected 
by  the  seconds  of  the  parties. 


(ir) 


"  Cox.  Burr  arrived  first  on  the  ground,  as  had  been 
previously  agreed  :  when  Gen.  Hamilton  arrived  the  panics 
exchanged  salutations,  and  the  seconds  proceeded  to  make 
their  arrangements.  They  measured  the  distance,  ten  full 
paces,  and  cast  lots  for  the  choice  of  position,  as  also  to  de- 
termine by  whom  the  word  should  be  given,  both  of  which 
fell  to  the  second  of  Gen.  Hamilton.  They  then  proceed- 
ed to  load  the  pistols  in  each  others  presence,  after  which 
the  parties  took  their  stations.  The  gentleman  who  was  to 
give  the  word,  then  explained  to  the  parties  the  rules  which 
were  to  govern  them  in  firing,  which  were  as  follows  :  "  The 
parties  being  placed  at  their  stations..,the  second  who  gives 
the  word  shall  ask  them  whether  they  are  ready  ;  being  an- 
swered in  the  affirmative,  he  shall  say  "  Present  /"  after  this 
the  parties  shall  present  and  fire  when  they  please. ..If  one 
fires  before  the  other,  the  opposite  second  shall  say  one,  two, 
three,  fire...and  he  shall  then  fire  or  Ibse  his  fire."  He  then 
asked  if  they  were  prepared  ;  being  answered  in  the  affirma- 
tive, he  gave  the  word  present,  as  had  been  agreed  on,  and 
both  parties  presented  and  fired  in  succession — -the  interven- 
ing time  is  not  expressed,  as  the  seconds  do  not  precisely 
agree  on  that  point,  "  The  fire  of  Colonel  Burr  took  effect, 
and  General  Hamilton  almost  instantly  fell.  Col.  Burr  then 
advanced  toward  General  Hamilton,  with  a  manner  and 
gesture  that  appeared  to  General  Hamilton's  friend  to  be 
expressive  of  regret,  but  without  speaking,  turned  about 
and  withdrew,  being  urged  from  the  field  by  his  friend  as 
has  been  subsequently  stated,  with  a  view  to  prevent  his 
being  recognized  by  the  surgeon  and  bargemen,  who  were 
then  approaching.  No  further  communication  took  place 
between  the  principals,  and  the  barge  that  carried  Col.  Burr 
immediately  returned  to  the  city.  We  conceive  it  proper 
to  add  that  the  conduct  of  the  parties  in  this  interview  was 
perfectly  proper  as  suited  the  occasion." 

D 


(  18  ) 

THE  abdve  is  a  statement  of  only  such  leading  particulars 
as  the  seconds  supposed  it  would  be  proper  for  them,  as 
such,  to  publish  :  but  as  I  think  a  deep  interest  will  be  felt 
in  every  circumstance  attending  the  death  of  General 
HAMILTON,  I  have  been  at  some  pains  to  collect  all  the  in- 
formation on  the  subject  that  was  to  be  had  from  authentic 
sources. 

IT  was  nearly  seven  in  the  morning  when  the  boat  which 
carried  General  Hamilton,  his  friend  Mr.  Pendleton,  and 
the  Surgeon  mutually  agreed  on,  Doctor  Hosack,  reached 
that  part  of  the  Jersey  shore  called  the  Wealicnvk.  There 
they  found  Mr.  Burr  and  his  friend  Mr.  Van  Ness,  who, 
as  I  am  told,  had  been  employed  since  their  arrival, 
with  coats  off,  in  clearing  away  the  bushes,  limbs  of  trees, 
&c.  so  as  to  make  a  fair  opening.  The  parties  in  a  few  mo- 
ments were  at  their  allotted  situations  :  when  Mr.  Pendleton 
gave  the  word,  Mr.  Burr  raised  his  arm  slowly,  deliberate- 
ly took  his  aim,  and  fired.  His  ball  entered  General  Ha- 
milton's right  side  :  as  soon  as  the  bullet  struck  him,  he  rais- 
ed himself  involuntarily  on  his  toes,  turned  a  little  to  the  left 
(at  which  moment  his  pistol  went  off,)  and  fell  upon  his  face. 
Mr.  Pendleton  immediately  called  out  for  Dr.  Hosack,  who, 
in  running  to  the  spot,  had  to  pass  Mr.  Van  Ness  and  Col. 
Burr ;  but  Van  Ness  had  the  cool  precaution  to  cover  his 
principal  with  an  umbrella,  so  that  Dr.  Hosack  should  not 
be  able  to  swear  that  he  saw  him  on  the  field.  What  pas- 
sed after  this  the  reader  will  have  in  the  following  letter 
from  Dr.  Hosack  himself,  in  answer  to  my  note  : 

u  August  V7th,  1804. 
"  DEAR  SIR, 

"  To  comply  with  your  request  is  a  painful  task  ;  but  I  will 
repress  my  feelings  while  I  endeavour  to  furnish  you  with  an. 


(  19  ) 

enumeration  of  such  particulars  relative  to  the  melancholy 
end  of  our  beloved  friend  Hamilton,  as  dwell  most  forcibly 
on  my  recollection. 

"  WHEN  called  to  him,  upon  his  receiving  the  fatal  wound, 
I  found  him  half  sitting  on  the  ground,  supported  in  the 
arms  of  Mr.  Pendleton.  His  countenance  of  death  I  shall 
never  forget — He  had  at  that  instant  just  strength  to  say, 
"  This  is  a  mortal  wound,  Doctor ;"  when  he  sunk  away,  and 
became  to  all  appearance  lifeless.  I  immediately  stripped 
up  his  clothes,  and  soon,  alas  !  ascertained  that  the  di- 
rection of  the  ball  must  have  been  through  some  vital 
part*.  His  pulses  were  not  to  be  felt  ;  his  respiration 
was  entirely  suspended  ;  and  upon  laying  my  hand  on  his 
heart,  and  perceiving  no  motion  there,  I  considered  him 
as  irrecoverably  gone.  I  however  observed  to  Mr.  Pen- 
dleton, that  the  only  chance  for  his  reviving  was  immediate- 
ly to  get  him  upon  the  water.  We  therefore  lifted  him  up, 
and  carried  him  out  of  the  wood,  to  the  margin  of  the  bank, 
where  the  bargemen  aided  us  in  conveying  him  into  the 
boat,  which  immediately  put  off.  During  all  this  time  I 
could  not  discover  the  least  symptom  of  returning  life.  I  now 
rubbed  his  face,  lips,  and  temples,  with  spirits  of  hartshorne, 
applied  it  to  his  neck  and  breast,  and  to  the  wrists  and 
palms  of  his  hands,  and  endeavoured  to  pour  some  into  his 

*  For  the  satisfaction  of  some  of  General  Hamilton's  friends,  I  examin- 
ed his  body  after  death,  in  presence  of  Dr.  Pest  and  two  other  gentlemen. 
I  discovered  that  the  ball  struck  the  second  or  third  false  rib,  and  frac- 
tured it  about  in  the  middle  ;  it  then  passed  through  the  liver  and  dia- 
phragm, and,  as  nearly  as  we  could  ascertain  without  a  minute  examin- 
ation, lodged  in  the  first  or  second  lumbar  vertebra.  The  vertebra  in 
which  it  was  lodged  was  considerably  splintered,  so  that  the  spiculac  were 
distinctly  perceptible  to  the  finger.  About  a  pint  of  clotted  blood  was 
found  in  the  cavity  of  the  belly,  which  had  probably  been  effused  from 
,'the  divided  vessels  of  the  liver. 


(20) 

mouth.  When  we  had  got,  as  I  should  judge,  abbut  50  yard8 
from  the  shore,  some  imperfect  efforts  to  breathe  were  for  the 
first  time  manifest :  in  a  few  minutes  he  sighed,  and  became 
sensible  to  the  impression  of  the  hartshorne,  or  the  fresh  air  of 
the  water  i  He  breathed  ;  his  eyes,  hardly  opened,  wandered, 
without  fixing  upon  any  objects  ;  to  our  great  joy  he  at  length 
spoke:  "  MV vision  is  indistinct,"  were  his  first  words^  His 
pulse  became  more  perceptible  ;  his  respiration  more  regular ; 
his  sight  returned.  I  then  examined  the  wound  to  know  if  there 
was  any  dangerous  discharge  of  blood  ;  upon  slightly  pressing 
his  side  it  gave  him  pain  ;  on  which  I  desisted.  Soon  after 
recovering  his  sight,  he  happened  to  cast  his  eye  upon  the 
case  of  pistols,  and  observing  the  one  that  he  had  had  in 
his  hand  lyihg  on  the  outside,  he  said,  "  Take  care  of  that 
pistol ;  it  is  undischarged,  and  still  cocked ;  it  may  go  off 
and  do  harm  ; — Pendleton  knows,  (attempting  to  turn  his 
head  towards  him)  that  I  did  not  intend  to  fire  at  him." 
"  Yes,"  said  Mr.  Pendleton,  understanding  his  wish, "  I  have 
already  made  Dr.  Hosack  acquainted  with  your  determina- 
tion as  to  that."  He  then  closed  his  eyes  and  remained 
calm,  without  any  disposition  to  speak  ;  nor  did  he  say  much 
afterwards,  excepting  in  reply  to  my  questions  as  to  his  feel- 
ings. He  asked  me  once  or  twice,  how  I  found  his  pulse ; 
find  he  informed  me  that  his  lower  extremities  had  lost  all 
feeling ;  manifesting  to  me  that  he  entertained  no  hopes  that 
he  should  long  survive.  I  changed  the  posture  of  his  limbs, 
but  to  no  purpose ;  they  had  totally  lost  their  sensibility. 
Perceiving  that  we  approached  the  shore,  he  said,  M  Let 
Mrs.  Hamilton  be  immediately  sent  for^— let  the  event  be 
gradually  broken  to  her  ;  but  give  her  hopes."  Looking  up 
we  saw  his  friend  Mr.  Bayard  standing  on  the  wharf  in 
great  agitation.  He  had  been  told  by  his  servant  that  Gen. 
Hamilton,  Mr.  Pendleton,  and  myself,  had  crossed  the  river 
•in  a  boat  together,  and  too  well  he  conjectured  the  fatal  er- 


rand,  and  foreboded  the  dreadful  result.  Perceiving,  as  we 
came  nearer,  that  Mr.  Pendleton  and  myself  only  sat  up  in  the 
gtern  sheets,  he  clasped  his  hands  together  in  the  most  vio- 
lent apprehension  ;  but  when  I  called  to  him  to  have  a  cot 
prepared,  and  he  at  the  same  tnoment  saw  his  poor  friend 
lying  in  the  bottom  of  the  boat,  he  threw  up  his  eyes  and 
burst  into  a  flood  of  tears  and  lamentation.  Hamilton  alone 
appeared  tranquil  and  composed.  We  then  conveyed  him 
as  tenderly  as  possible  up  to  the  house.  The  distresses  of 
this  amiable  family  were  such  that  till  the  first  shock  was  abat- 
ed, they  were  scarcely  able  to  summon  fortitude  enough  to 
yield  sufficient  assistance  to  their  dying  friend. 

"  UPON  our  reaching  the  house  he  became  ftiore  languid, 
occasioned  probably  by  the  agitation  of  his  removal  from 
the  boat.  I  gave  him  a  little  weak  wine  and  water.  When 
he  recovered  his  feelings,  he  complained  of  pain  in  his  back ; 
we  immediately  undressed  him,  laid  him  in  bed,  and  dark- 
ened the  room.  I  then  gave  him  a  large  anodyne,  which 
I  frequently  repeated.  During  the  first  day  he  took  upwards 
of  an  ounce  of  laudanum ;  and  tepid  anodyne  fomentations 
were  also  applied  to  those  parts  nearest  the  seat  of  his  pain — 
Yet  were  his  sufferings,  during  the  whole  of  the  day,  al- 
most intolerable*.  I  had  not  the  shadow  of  a  hope  of  his 
recovery,  and  Dr.  Post,  whom  I  requested  might  be  sent 
for  immediately  on  our  reaching  Mr.  Bayard's  house,  united 
with  me  in  this  opinion.  General  Rey,  the  French  Consul, 
also  had  the  goodness  to  invite  the  surgeons  of  the  French 
frigates  in  our  harbour,  as  they  had  had  much  experience  in 
gun-shot  wounds,  to  render  their  assistance.  They  immedi- 
ately came  ;  but  to  prevent  his  being  disturbed  I  stated  to 

*  As  his  habit  was  delicate  and  had  been  lately  rendered  more  feeble  by 
ill  health,  particularly  by  a  disorder  of  the  stomach  and  bowels,  I  carefully 
avoided  all  those  remedies  which  are  usually  indicated  on  such  occa- 
sions. 


(22) 

« 

them  his  situation,  described  the  nature  of  his  wound  and 
the  direction  of  the  ball,  with  all  the  symptoms  that  could 
enable  them  to  form  an  opinion  as  to  the  event.  One  of  the 
gentlemen  then  accompanied  me  to  the  bed  side.  The  result 
was  a  confirmation  of  the  opinion  that  had  already  been 
expressed  by  Dr.  Post  and  myself. 

"  DURING  the  night,  he  had  some  imperfect  sleep  ;  but  the 
succeeding  morning  his  symptoms  were  aggravated,  attended 
however  with  a  diminution  of  pain.  His  mind  retained  all 
its  usual  strength  and  composure.  The  great  source  of 
his  anxiety  seemed  to  be  in  his  sympathy  with  his  half 
distracted  wife  and  children.  He  spoke  to  me  frequently 
of  them — "  My  beloved  wife  and  children,"  were  always 
his  expressions.  But  his  fortitude  triumphed  over  his  si- 
tuation, dreadful  as  it  was  ;  once,  indeed,  at  the  sight  of  his 
children  brought  to  the  bed-side  together,  seven  in  number, 
his  utterance  forsook  him ;  he  opened  his  eyes,  gave  them 
one  look,  and  closed  them  again,  till  they  were  taken  away. 
As  a  proof  of  his  extraordinary  composure  of  mind,  let  me 
add,  that  he  alone  could  calm  the  frantic  grief  of  their  mo- 
ther. "  Remember,  my  Eliza,  you  are  a  Christian"  were  the 
expressions  with  which  he  frequently,  with  a  firm  voice,  but 
""in  a  pathetic  and  impressive  manner,  addressed  her.  His 
words,  and  the  tone  in  which  they  were  uttered,  will  never 
be  effaced  from  my  memory.  At  about  two  o'clock,  as  the 
public  well  knows,  he  expired. 

"  Incorrupta  fides — nudaque  veritas 
Quando  ullum  invenient  parem  ? 
Multis  ille  quidem  flebilis  occidit." 

"  I  am,  Sir, 

"  Your  friend  and  humble  serv't, 

"  DAVID  HOSACK, 

WM.  COLEMAN,  Esq." 


(23  ) 

AFTER  his  death,  a  note  which  had  been  written  the  even- 
ing before  the  interview,  was  found  addressed  to  the  gen- 
tleman who  accompanied  him  to  the  field ;  thanking  him 
with  tenderness  for  his  friendship  to  him,  and  informing 
him  where  would  be  found  the  keys  of  certain  drawers  in  his 
desk,  in  which  he  had  deposited  such  papers  as  he  had 
thought  proper  to  leave  behind  him  ;  together  with  his  last 
Will. 

THE  following  paper,  as  containing  his  motives  for  accept- 
ing the  challenge  ;  his  reflections  on  his  situation ;  and  some 
remarks  on  the  conduct  of  the  man,  who  was  to  be  the 
cause  of  his  death,  is  presented  as  a  highly  interesting  docu- 
ment. 


N°  XII. 

ON  my  expected  interview  with  Col.  Burr,  I  think  it 
proper  to  make  some  remarks  explanatory  of  my  conduct 
motives,  and  views. 

I  WAS  certainly  desirous  of  avoiding  this  interview  for  the 
most  cogent  reasons. 

1.  MY  religious  and  moral  principles  are  strongly  opposed 
to  the  practice  of  duelling,  and  it  would  ever  give  me  pain 
to  be  obliged  to  shed  the  blood  of  a  fellow  creature  in  a  pri- 
vate combat  forbidden  by  the  laws. 

2.  MY  wife  and  children  are  extremely  dear  to  me,  and 
my  life  is  of  the  utmost  importance  to  them,  in  various 
views. 


(24) 

3.  I  FEEL  a  sense  of  obligation  towards  my  creditors . 
who  in  case  of  accident  to  me,  by  the  forced  sale  of  my 
property,  may  be  in  some  degree  sufferers.  I  did  not  think 
myself  at  liberty  as  a  man  of  probity,  lightly  to  expose  them 
to  this  Jiazard. . 

4.  I  AM  conscious  of  no  ill  will  to  Col.  Burr,  distinct 
from  political  opposition,  which,  as  I  trust,  has  proceeded 
from  pure  and  upright  motives. 

LASTLY,  I  shall  hazard  much,  and  can  possibly  gain  no- 
thing by  the  issue  of  the  interview. 

BUT  it  was,  as  I  conceive,  impossible  for  me  to  avoid  it. 
There  were  intrinsic  difficulties  in  the  thing,  and  artificial 
embarrassments,  from  the  manner  of  proceeding  on  the 
part  of  Col.  Burr. 

INTRINSIC,  because  it  is  not  to  be  denied,  that  my  ani- 
madversions on  the  political  principles,  character,  and  views 
of  Col.  Burr,  have  been  extremely  severe  ;  and  on  different 
occasions,  I,  in  common  with  many  others,  have  made  very 
unfavourable  criticisms  on  particular  instances  of  the  private 
conduct  of  this  gentleman. 

IN  proportion  as  these  impressions  were  entertained  with 
sincerity,  and  uttered  with  motives  and  for  purposes  which 
might  appear  to  me  commendable,  would  be  the  difficulty 
(until  they  could  be  removed  by  evidence  of  their  being  er- 
roneous,) of  explanation  or  apology.  The  disavowal  requir- 
ed of  me  by  Col.  Burr,  in  a  general  and  indefinite  \form, 
was  out  of  my  power,  if  it  had  really  been  proper  for  me  to 
submit  to  be  so  questioned ;  but  I  was  sincerely  of  opinion 
that  this  could  not  be,  and  in  this  opinion,  I  was  confirmed 


(25) 

by  that  of  a  very  moderate  and  judicious  friend  whom  I  con- 
sulted. Besides  that,  Col.  Burr  appeared  to  me  to  assume^ 
in  the  first  instance,  a  tone  unnecessarily  peremptory  and 
menacing,  and  in  the  second,  positively  offensive.  Yet  I 
wished,  as  far  as  might  be  practicable,  to  leave  a  door  open, 
to  accommodation.  This,  I  think,  will  be  inferred  from 
the  written  communications  made  by  me  and  by  my  direc- 
tion, and  would  be  confirmed  by  the  conversations  between 
Mr.  Van  Ness  and  myself,  which  arose  out  of  the  subject. 

I  AM  not  sure  whether,  under  all  the  circumstances,  I 
did  not  go  further  in  the  attempt  to  accommodate,  than  a 
punctilious  delicacy  will  justify.  If  so,  I  hope  the  motives 
I  have  stated  will  excuse  me. 

IT  is  not  my  design,  by  what  I  have  said,  to  affix  any 
odium  on  the  conduct  of  Col.  Burr,  in  this  case.  He  doubt-* 
less  has  heard  of  animadversions  of  mine  which  bore  very 
hard  upon  him ;  and  it  is  probable  that  as  usual  they  were 
accompanied  with  some  falsehoods.  He  may  have  supposed 
himself  under  a  necessity  of  acting  as  he  has  done.  I  hope 
the  grounds  of  his  proceeding  have  been  such  as  ought  to 
satisfy  his  own  conscience. 

I  TRUST,  at  the  same  time,  that  the  world  will  do  me  the 
justice  to  believe,  that  I  have  not  censured  him  on  light 
grounds,  nor  from  unworthy  inducements.  I  certainly  have 
had  strong  reasons  for  what  I  may  have  said,  though  it  is 
possible  that  in  some  particulars,  I  may  have  been  influenc* 
ed  by  misconstruction  or  misinformation.  Jt  is  also  my  ar- 
dent wish  that  I  may  have  been  more  mistaken  than  I  think 
I  have  been,  and  that  he,  by  his  future  conduct,  may  show 
himself  worthy  of  all  confidence  and  esteem,  and  prove  an 
ornament  and  blessing  to  the  country. 


(26  ) 

As  well  because  it  is  possible  that  I  may  have  injured 
Col.  Burr,  however  convinced  myself  that  my  opinions  and 
declarations  have  been  well  founded,  as  from  my  general 
principles  and  temper  in  relation  to  similar  affairs,  I  have 
resolved,  if  our  interview  is  conducted  in  the  usual  manner, 
and  it  pleases  God  to  give  me  the  opportunity,  to  reserve 
and  throw  away  my  first  fire,  and  I  have  thoughts  even  of 
reserving  my  second  fire — and  thus  giving  a  double  oppor- 
tunity to  Col.  Burr  to  pause  and  to  reflect. 

IT  is  not,  however,  my  intention  to  enter  into-  any  expla- 
nations on  the  ground — Apology  from  principle,  I  hope,  ra- 
ther than  pride,  is  out  of  the  question. 

To  those  who,  with  me,  abhorring  the  practice  of  duel- 
ling, may  think  that  I  ought  on  no  account  to  have  added  to 
the  number  of  bad  examples,  I  answer,  that  my  relative  si- 
tuation, as  well  in  public  as  private,  enforcing  all  the  consi- 
derations which  constitute  what  men  of  the  world  denomi- 
nate honour,  imposed  on  me  (as  I  thought)  a  peculiar  neces- 
sity not  to  decline  the  call.  The  ability  to  be  in  future  use- 
ful, whether  in  resisting  mischief  or  effecting  good,  in  those 
crises  of  our  public  affairs  which  seem  likely  to  happen, 
would  probably  be  inseparable  from  a  conformity  with  public 
prejudice  in  this  particular. 

A.  H." 

IT  is  impossible  for  me  to  add  any  thing,  that  I  think  wiH 
assist  the  reader  in  forming  a  judgment  on  this  affecting  pa- 
per, written  under  the  solemn  impression  that  it  was  to  be 
the  last  he  should  ever  write.  I  should  do  an  injustice  to, 
his  memory  to  say  one  word,  by  way  of  attempting  to.  gain, 
an  implicit  credit  for  every  syllable  it  contains.  To  the 
head  and  heart  of  every  reader,  then,  it  is  left  without  com- 
ment. 


*  *  i* 

(tr) 

GENERAL  HAMILTON'S  WILL. 

IN  the  name  of  GOD,  Amen.  I,  ALEXANDER 
HAMILTON,  of  the  city  of  New-York,  Counsellor  at 
Law,  do  make  this  my  last  Will  and  Testament  as  fol- 
lows : 

FIRST.  I  appoint  JOHN  B.  CHURCH,  NICHOLAS  FISH,  and 
NATHANIEL  PENDLETON,  of  the  city  aforesaid,  Esquires, 
to  be  Executors  and  Trustees  of  this  my  Will ;  and  I  de- 
vise to  them,  their  heirs  and  assigns,  as  joint  tenants  and 
not  as  tenants  in  common,  all  my  estate  real  and  personal 
whatsoever,  and  wheresoever,  upon  trust  at  their  discretion, 
to  sell  and  dispose  of  the  same,  at  such  time  and  times,  in 
such  manner,  and  upon  such  terms,  as  they,  the  survivors 
and  survivor,  shall  think  fit ;  and  out  of  the  proceeds  to  pay 
all  the  debts  which  I  shall  owe  at  the  time  of  my  decease  ; 
in  whole,  if  the  fund  be  .sufficient;  proportionably,  if  it 
shall  be  insufficient;  and  the  residue,  if  any  there  shall  be, 
~to  pay  and  deliver  to  my  excellent  and  dear  wife  Elizabeth 
Hamilton. 

£ 

THOUGH,  if  it  should  please  God  to  spare  my  life,  I  may 
look  for  a  considerable  surplus  out  of  my  .present  property  ; 
yet,  if  he  should  speedily  call  me  to  the  eternal  world,  a  forc- 
ed sale,  as  is  usual,  may  possibly  render  it  insufficient  to 
satisfy  my  debts.  I  pray  God  that  something  may  remain 
for  the  maintenance  and  education  of  jny  dear  wife  and  chil- 
dren. But  should  it  on  the  contrary  happen,  that  there  is 
not  enough  for  the  payment  of  my  debts,  I  entreat  my  dear 
children,  if  they,  or  any  of  them,  should  ever  be  able,  to 
make  up  the  deficiency*  I,  without  hesitation,  commit  to  their 
delicacy  a  wish  which  is  dictated  by  my  own. — Though  con- 
scious that  I  have  too  far  sacrificed  the  interests  of  my  family 
to  public  avocations,  and  on  this  account  have^he  less  claim 


(  28  ) 

to  burthen  my  children,  yet  I  trust  in  their  magnanimity  to 
appreciate  as  they  ought,  this  my  request.  In  so  unfavour- 
able an  event  of  things,  the  support  of  their  dear  mother, 
with  the  most  respectful  and  tender  attention,  is  a  duty,  all 
the  sacredness  of  which  they  will  feel.  Probably  her  own 
patrimonial  resources  will  preserve  her  from  indigence.  But 
in  all  situations  they  are  charged  to  bear  in  mind,  that  she 
has  been  to  them  the  most  devoted  and  best  of  mothers. 

IN  testimony  whereof  I  have  hereunto  subscribed  my 
hand,  the  ninth  day  of  July,  in  the  year  of  our  Lord 
one  thousand  eight  hundred  and  four. 

ALEXANDER  HAMILTON. 

SIGNED,  Sealed,  Published,  and  declared,  as  and  for  his 
last  Will  and  Testament,  in  our  presence,  who  have  sub- 
scribed the  same  in  his  presence,  the  words  yohn  B- 
Church  being  above  interlined* 

DOMINIC  F.  BLAKE, 
GRAHAM  NEWELL, 
THEO.  B.  VALLEAU. 

New-Tor^  Surrogate's  Office,  ss.— -July  16th,  1804. 
I  DO  hereby  certify  the  preceding  to  be  a  true  copy  of  the 
original  Will  of  Alexander  Hamilton,  deceased,  now   on 
file  at  my  office* 

SYLVANUS  MILLER,  Surrogate. 


THE  impression  which  his  death  made  on  all  classes  of 
people  in  the  city,  will  best  be  seen  by  the  following  pro- 
ceedings. 


(29) 

i£  AT  a  numerous  and  respectable  meeting  of  Merchants 
and  other  citizens  of  New- York,  at  the  Tontine  Coffee-House, 
last  Evening,  Mr.  Wm.  W.  Wolsey  was  called  to  the  chair, 
and  Mr.  Maturin  Livingston  appointed  Secretary* 

THE  Meeting  having  been  informed  of  the  melancho- 
ly event  of  General  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON'S  decease, 
and  being  deeply  sensible  of  the  irreparable  loss  which 
the  United  States  have  sustained  by  the  death  of  a 
man,  whose  public  and  private  virtues  have  endeared  him 
to  his  friends  and  acquaintances  ;  whose  patriotism,  talents, 
integrity,  and  eminent  services,  have  rendered  him  pecu- 
liarly valuable  to  his  country ;  and  being  anxiously  desirous 
to  render  to  so  great  and  distinguished  a  character  the  last 
tribute  of  respect  in  their  power  : 

Resolve,  That  this  meeting  will  unite  with  their  fellow- 
citizens  of  all  classes  in  every  suitable  demonstration  of  sor- 
row for  the  death  of  General  Alexander  Hamilton — And 
that,  for  this  purpose,  they  recommend  to  the  citizens  at 
large,  to  shut  up  their  stores,  and  generally  to  suspend  bu- 
siness on  Saturday  the  14th  inst.  and  to  assemble  at  the 
house  of  Mr.  Church,  in  Robinson-street,  at  ten  o'clock  in 
the  forenoon,  to  form  a  procession  to  attend  the  remains  of 
the  deceased : 

THAT  it  be  recommended  to  the  owners  and  masters  of 
vessels  to  direct  the  colours  of  all  the  vessels  in  the  harbour 
to  be  hoisted  half  mast,  during  the  whole  of  Saturday 
next : 

H 

THAT  Mr.  Henderson,  Mr.  M.  Livingston,  Mr.  A. 
Jackson,  Mr.  J.  Kane,  and  Mr.  H.  I.  Wyckoff,  be  a  com- 
mittee on  the  part  of  this  meeting,  to  meet  such  persons  as 


(  30) 

may  be  appointed  by  other  bodies  of  their  fellow-citizens^  in 
order  to  make  sirch  further  arrangements  as  the  occasion 
may  require.  / 

WILLIAM  W.  WOOLSEY,  Chairman. 

MATURIN  LIVINGSTON,  Secretary. 

THE  Committee  of  arrangement  appointed  at  the  meet- 
hig  at  the  Tontine  Coffee  House  on  the  12th  inst.  in  con- 
formity with  the  sense  of  the  meeting,  expressed  on  that  oc- 
casion, request  their  fellow-citizens  in  general  to  wear 
Crape  on  the  left  arm  for  thirty  days,  as  a  testimony  of  their 
respect  for  the  Integrity,  Virtues,  Talents,  and  Patriotism,  of 
Gen.  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON,  deceased." 

July  13. 


41  City  of  New-Tork,  ss. 

"  IN  COMMON  COUNCIL,  July  43,  1804. 

"  Resolved  unanimously.  That  the  Common  Council  of  the 
City  of  New- York  entertain  the  most  unfeigned  sorrow  and 
regret  for  the  death  of  their  fellow  citizen,  ALEXANDER 
HAMILTON  j  and  with  a  view  to  pay  a  suitable  respect  to 
his  past  life  and  future  memory,  and  to  afford  the  most  un- 
equivocal testimony  of  the  great  loss  which,  in  the  opinion 
of  the  Common  Council,  not  only  this  city  but  the  state  of 
New- York  and  the  United  States  have  sustained  by  the 
death  of  this  great  and  good  man,  the  Common  Council  do 
unanimously  recommend  that  the  usual  business  of  the  day 
be  dispensed  with  by  all  classes  of  inhabitants  : 

AND,  Resolved  unanimously,  That  the  ordinance  prohibit- 
ing the  tolling  of  Bells  at  funerals  be  on  this  occasion  sus- 


pended,  and  that  it  be  recommended  to  those  who  have  the 
charge  of  the  Church  Bells  in  this  City,  to  cause  them  to  be 
muffled  and  tolled  at  proper  intervals  during  the  day  of  his 
interment : 

AND  ako,  Resolved  unanimously,  That  the  members  of  die 
Common  Council  will  in  a  body  attend  and  join  in  the  fune- 
ral procession  of  the  deceased,  at  the  time  and  place  appoint- 
ed :  £ 

LIKEWISE,  Resolved  unanimously,.  That  a  Committee  of 
three  be  appointed  to  make  such  arrangements  in  behalf  and 
at  the  expense  of  the  Common  Council  of  the  City  of  New- 
York,  for  performing  the  funeral  obsequies  of  the  deceased, 
as  the  said  Committee  shall  judge  necessary  and  expedient* 

Extract  from  the  Minutes, 

T.  WORTMAN,  Clerk." 


"  AGREEABLE  to  notice,  the  gentle  men  of  the  Bar  met  at  Lo- 
vett's  Hotel,  to  join  in  those  expressions  of  sorrow  so  uni- 
versally produced  by  the  untimely  death  of  General  Ha- 
milton. The  meeting  was  very  numerous,  and  all  party 
distinction  was  lost  in  the  general  sentiment  of  love  and 
respect  for  the  illustrious  deceased.  Mr.  Harison,  in  a  few 
words,  with  a  faltering  tongue  and  a  feeling  heart,  adverted 
to  the  sad  occasion  on  which  they  were  called  together, 
and  in  the  most  affectionate  terms  mentioned  the  private 
virtues,  the  splendid  talents,  and  the  useful  services  of  this 
best  and  greatest  of  men.  Amidst  countenances  which 
spoke  no  common  grief  the  following  resolutions  were 
adopted : 


\ 

(32  ) 

u  AT  a  general  meeting  of  the  Gentlemen  of  the  Bar  of 
the  City  of  New-  York,  at  Lovett's  Hotel,  on  the  13th  of 
July,  1804;  RICHARD  HARISON,  Esq.  in  the  chair  : 

THIS  meeting  being  deeply  affected  by  the  death  of 
ALEXANDER  HAMILTON,  the  brightest  ornament  of  their 
profession,  whom  they  have  ever  held  in  the  most  sin- 
cere esteem,  and  admiration  ;  whose  superior  talents,  dis- 
tinguished patriotism,  eminent  services,  and  uniform  in- 
tegrity, had  procured  him  universal  confidence  and  venera- 
tion, and  whose  loss  they  lament  as  a  severe  private  afflic- 
tion and  deplore  as  a  great  public  calamity  : 

RESOLVED,  that  they  will  unite  with  their  fellow-citizens 
to  demonstrate  in  every  suitable  manner  their  sincere  res- 
pect for  the  memory  of  General  HAMILTON,  and  the 
deep  sense  of  the  loss  which  their  country  has  sustained. 

THAT  they  will  wear  crape  as  mourning  for  their  deceas- 
ed brother  for  the  space  of  six  weeks. 

THAT  Jacob  Radcliff,  Josiah  O.  Hoffman,  Nathan  San- 
ford,  John  Wells,  and  Daniel  D.  Tompkins,  be  a  committee 
to  make  any  further  arrangements  that  may  be  proper  on 
this  mournful  occasion. 

DANIEL  D.  TOMPKINS,  Sec'ry." 


New-Tor^  12th  July,  1804. 

"  BRIGADE  ORDERS. 

"  FOR  the  purpose  of  paying  the  last  testimony  of  military 
respect  to  Major  General  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON, 


A  COLLECTION,  &c. 


AN  the  following  pages  will  be  found  a  satisfactory  account 
of  the  shocking  catastrophe  which  has  deprived  America 
of  her  most  valuable  citizen,  and  our  age  of  the  greatest 
man  ;  together  with  some  brief  remarks,  calculated  to  place 
the  melancholy  affair  in  its  true  light,  both  as  it  respects  the 
deceased,  and  him  by  whose  arm  he  was  slain. 

PERHAPS  the  most  satisfactory  manner  of  introducing  the 
reader  to  his  subject,  will  be  to  begin  with  the  Correspondence 
which  led  to  the  fatal  interview.  It  follows  : 

NO.    I. 

New-Tort,  Jime  18,  1804. 
SIR, 

I  SEND  for  your  perusal  a  letter  signed  Charles  D. 
Cooper,  which,  though  apparently  published  some  time 
ago,  has  but  very  recently  come  to  my  knowledge.  Mr. 
Van  Ness,  who  does  me  the  favour  to  deliver  this,  will 
point  out  to  you  that  clause  of  the  letter  to  which  I  particu- 
larly request  your  attention. 

You  must  perceive,  Sir,  the  necessity  of  a  prompt  and 
unqualified  acknowledgment  or  denial  of  the  use  of  any  ex- 
pression which  would  warrant  the  assertions  of  Dr.  Cooper., 

I  have  the  honour  to  be, 

Your  obedient  serv't, 

A.  BURR. 
General  HAMILTON. 


(2) 
N°.  II. 

\#    '  :    t  f 

Nerv-Tork,  June  20,  1804. 
SIR, 

I  HAVE  maturely  reflected  on  the  subject  of  your  letter  of 
the  18th  inst.  and  the  more  I  have  reflected  the  more  I  have 
become  convinced,  that  I  could  not,  without  manifest  im- 
propriety, make  the  avowal  or  disavowal  which  you  seem  to 
think  necessary.  The  clause  pointed  out  by  Mr.  Van  Ness 
is  in  these  terms :  "  I  could  detail  to  you  a  still  more  despi- 
cable opinion  which  General  Hamilton  has  expressed  of  Mr. 
Burr."  To  endeavour  to  discover  the  meaning  of  this 
declaration,  I  was  obliged  to  seek  in  the  antecedent  part  of 
this  letter  for  the  opinion  to  which  it  referred,  as  having 
been  already  disclosed.  I  found  it  in  these  words :  "  Ge- 
neral Hamilton  and  Judge  Kent  have  declared  in  substance, 
that  they  looked  upon  Mr.  Burr  to  be  a  dangerous  man,  and 
one  -who  ought  not.  to  be  trusted  with  the  reins  of  govern- 
ment" 

THE  language  of  Dr.  Cooper  plainly  implies,  that  he  con- 
sidered this  opinion  of  you,  which  he  attributes  to  me  as  a 
despicable  one ;  but  he  affirms  that  I  have  expressed  some 
other,  more  despicable,  without,  however,  mentioning  to 
whom,  when,  or  where.  'Tis  evident  that  the  phrase, 
u  still  more  despicable,"  admits  of  infinite  shades,  from  very 
light  to  very  dark.  How  am  I  to  judge  of  the  degree  in- 
tended ?  or  how  shall  I  annex  any  precise  idea  to  language 
so  indefinite? 

BETWEEN  gentlemen,  despicable  and  more  despicable  are 
not  worth  the  pains  of  distinction :  when  therefore  you  do 
not  interrogate  me,  as  to  the  opinion  which  is  specifically 
ascribed  to  me,  I  must  conclude,  that  you  view  it  as  within 


(3) 

the  limits  to  which  the  animadversions  of  political  opponents- 
upon  each  other  may  justifiably  extend,  and  consequently  as 
not  warranting  the  idea  of  it  which  Doctor  Cooper  appears 
to  entertain.  If  so,  what  precise  inference  could  you  draw, 
as  a  guide  for  your  conduct,  were  I  to  acknowledge  that  I 
had  expressed  an  opinion  of  you  still  more  despicable  than  the 
one  which  is  particularized  ?  How  could  you  be  sure  that 
even  this  opinion  had  exceeded  the  bounds  which  you  would 
yourself  deem  admissible  between  political  opponents  ? 

BUT  I  forbear  further  comment  on  the  embarrassment,  to 
which  the  requisition  you  have  made  naturally  leads.  The 
occasion  forbids  a  more  ample  illustration,  though  nothing 
could  be  more  easy  than  to  pursue  it. 

REPE  ATING  that  I  cannot  reconcile  it  with  propriety  to 
make  the  acknowledgment  or  denial  you  desire,  I  will  add 
that  I  deem  it  inadmissible  on  principle,  to  consent  to  be  in- 
terrogated as  to  the  justness  of  the  inferences  which  may  be 
drawn  by  others  from  whatever  I  may  have  said  of  a  po- 
litical opponent,  in  the  course  of  fifteen  years  competition.  If 
there  were  no  other  objection  to  it  this  is  sufficient,  that  it 
would  tend  to  expose  my  sincerity  and  delicacy  to  injurious 
imputations  from  every  person  who  may  at  any  time  have 
conceived  the  import  of  my  expressions,  differently  from 
what  I  may  then  have  intended  or  may  afterwards  recollect. 
I  stand  ready  to  avow  or  disavow  promptly  and  explicitly  any 
precise  or  definite  opinion  which  I  may  be  charged  with 
having  declared  of  any  Gentleman.  More  than  this  cannot 
fitly  be  expected  from  me  ;  and  especially  it  cannot  be  reason- 
ably expected  that  I  shall  enter  into  an  explanation  upon  a 
basis  so  vague  as  that  which  you  have  adopted.  I  trust  on 
.more  reflection  you  will  see  the  matter  in  the  same  light  with 


(4) 

me.     If  not,  I  can  only  regret  the  circumstance  and  must 
abide  the  consequences. 

THE  publication  of  Doctor  Cooper  was  never  seen  by 
me  till  after  the  receipt  of  your  letter. 

I  have  the  honour  to  be,  &c. 

A.  HAMILTON. 
Col.  BURR. 

N°.  III. 

New-Tor  k,  21st  June,  1804t 
SIR, 

YOUR  letter  of  the  20th  instant  has  been  this  day  receiv- 
td.  Having  considered  it  attentively,  I  regret  to  find  in  it 
nothing  of  that  sincerity  and  delicacy  which  you  profess  to 
value. 

POLITICAL  opposition  can  never  absolve  gentlemen  from 
the  necessity  of  a  rigid  adherence  to  the  laws  of  honour,  and 
the  rules  of  decorum.  I  neither  claim  such  privilege  nor 
indoJge  it  in  others. 

THE  common  sense  of  mankind  affixes  to  the  epithet  adopt- 
ed by  Dr.  Cooper,  the  idea  of  dishonour.  It  has  been 
publicly  applied  to  me  under  the  sanction  of  your  name. 
The  question  is  not,  whether  he  has  understood  the  mean* 
ing  of  the  word,  or  has  used  it  according  to  syntax,  and  with 
grammatical  accuracy ;  but,  whether  you  have  authorized 
this  application,  either  directly  or  by  uttering  expressions  or 
opinions  derogatory  to  my  honour.  The  rime  "  when"  is  in 


(O 

vour  own  knowledge,  but  no  way  material  to  me,  as  the 
calumny  has  now  first  been  disclosed,  so  as  to  become  the 
subject  of  my  notice,  and  as  the  effect  is  present  and  palpa- 
ble. 

YOUR  letter  has  furnished  me  with  new  reasons  for  requir- 
ing a  definite  reply. 

I  have  the  honour  to  be, 

Sir,  your  obedient, 

A.  BURR, 

General  HAMILTON. 


ON  Saturday  the  22d  of  June,  General  Hamilton,  for 
the  first  time,  called  on  Mr.  Pendleton  and  communicated  to 
him  the  preceding  corresponden.ee.  He  informed  him  that 
in  a  conversation  with  Mr.  Van  Ness  at  the  time  of  receiv- 
ing the  last  letter,  he  told  Mr.  Van  Ness  that  he  considered 
that  letter  as  rude  and  offensive,  and  that  it  was  not  possible 
for  him  to  give  it  any  other  answer  than  that  Mr.  Burr  must 
take  such  steps  as  he  might  think  proper.  He  said  farther, 
that  Mr.  Van  Ness  requested  him  to  take  time  to  delibe- 
rate, and  then  return  an  answer,  when  he  might  possibly  en- 
tertain a  different  opinion,  and  that  he  would  call  on  him 
to  receive  it.  That  his  reply  to  Mr.  Van  Ness  was,  that 
he  did  not  perceive  it  possible  for  him  to  give  any  other  an- 
swer than  that  he  had  mentioned,  unless  Mr.  Burr  would 
take  back  his  last  letter  and  write  one  which  would  admit  of 
a  different  reply.  He  then  gave  Mr.  Pendleton  the  letter 
hereafter  mentioned  of  the  22d  of  June,  to  be  delivered  to 


(6) 

Mr.  Van  Ness  when  he  should  call  on  Mr.  Pendleton  for  an 
answer,  and  went  to  his  country  house* 

THE  next  day  General  Hamilton  received,  while  there, 
the  following  letter. 


N°.  IV. 

June  23</,   1804. 
SIR, 

IN  the  afternoon  of  yesterday,  I  reported  to  Col.  Burr 
the  result  of  my  last  interview  with  yon,  and  appointed  the 
evening  to  receive  his  further  instructions.  Some  private 
engagements,  however,  prevented  me  from  calling  on  him 
till  this  morning.  On  my  return  to  the  city,  I  found  upon 
inquiry,  both  at  your  office  and  house,  that  you  had 
returned  to  your  residence  in  the  country.  Lest  an  inter- 
view there  might  be  less  agreeable  to  you  than  elsewhere,  I 
have  taken  the  liberty  of  addressing  you  this  note  to  inquire 
when  and  where  it  will  be  most  convenient  to  you  to  receive 
a  communication. 


Your  most  obedient  and  very  humble  servant, 

W.  P.  VAN  NESS. 
General  HAMILTON. 


Mr.  Pendleton  understood  from  General  Hamilton  that  he 
immediately  answered,  that  if  the  communication  was  pres- 
sing he  would  receive  it  at  his  country  house  that  day  j  if 


(O 

not,  he  would  be  at  his  house  in  tow;n  the  next  morning  at 
nine  o'clock.  But  he  did  not  give  Mr.  Pendleton  any  copy 
ef  this  note. 


N°.V. 

% 

New-Tor  k,  June  22,  1804. 
SIR, 

YOUR  first  letter,  in  a  style  too  peremptory,  made  a  de- 
mand, in  my  opinion,  unprecedented  and  unwarrantable. 
My  answer,  pointing  out  the  embarrassment,  gave  you  an 
opportunity  to  take  a  less  exceptionable  course.  You  have 
not  chosen  to  do  it ;  but  by  your  last  letter  received  this  day, 
containing  expressions  indecorous  and  improper,  you  have 
increased  the  difficulties  to  explanation  intrinsically  incident 
to  the  .nature  of  your  application* 

IF  by  a  u  definite  reply,"  you  mean  the  direct  avowal  or 
disavowal  required  in  your  first  letter,  I  have  no  other  an- 
swer to  give,  than  that  which  has  already  been  given.  If 
you  mean  any  thing  different,  admitting  of  greater  latitude, 
it  is  requisite  you  should  explain. 

I  have  the  honour  to  be, 

Sir,  your  obedient  servant^ 

ALEX.  HAMILTON 

AARON  BURR,  Esq. 


THIS  letter,  although  dated  on  the  23d  June,  remained 
iu  Mr.  Penclleton's  possession  until  the  25th,  within  which 


(8) 

period  he  had  several  conversations  with  Mr.  Van  Ness.  In 
these  conversations  Mr.  Pendleton  endeavoured  to  illustrate 
and  enforce  the  propriety  of  the  ground  General  Hamilton 
had  taken.  Mr.  Pendleton  mentioned  to  Mr.  Van  Ness  as 
the  result,  that  if  Col.  Burr  would  write  a  letter,  requesting 
to  know  in  substance  whether  in  the  conversation  to  which 
Dr.  Cooper  alluded,  any  particular  instance  of  dishonourable 
conduct  was  imputed  to  Col.  Burr,  or  whether  there  was 
any  impeachment  of  his  private  character,  Gen.  Hamilton 
would  declare  to  the  best  of  his  recollection  what  passed  in 
that  conversation :  and  Mr.  Pendleton  read  to  Mr.  Van 
Ness  a  paper  containing  the  substance  of  what  Gen.  Hamil- 
ton would  say  on  that  subject,  which  is  as  follows. 


N°.  VI. 

"  GENERAL  Hamilton  says  he  cannot  imagine  to  what 
Dr.  Cooper  may  have  alluded,  unless  it  were  to  a  conversation 
at  Mr.  Taylor's  in  Albany,  last  winter,  (at  which  he  and 
Gen.  Hamilton  were  present).  Gen.  Hamilton  cannot  recol- 
lect distinctly  the  particulars  of  that  conversation  so  as  to  un- 
dertake to  repeat  them,  without  running  the  risk  of  varying, 
or  omitting  what  might  be  deemed  important  circumstances. 
The  expressions  are  entirely  forgotten,  and  the  specific  ideas 
imperfectly  remembered  ;  but  to  the  best  of  his  recollection 
it  consisted  of  comments  on  the  political  principles  and  views 
of  Col.  Burr,  and  the  results  that  might  be  expected  from  them 
in  the  event  of  his  election  as  Governor,  without  reference  to 
any  particular  instance  of  past  conduct,  or  to  private  character." 

AFTER  the  delivery  of  the  letter  of  the  22d,  as  above 
mentioned;  in  another  interview  with  Mr.  Van  Ness  he 


(41) 

THE  streets  were  lined  with  people ;  doors  and  windows 
were  filled,  principally  with  weeping  females,  and  even  the 
house  tops  were  covered  with  spectators,  who  came  from 
all  parts  to  behold  the  melancholy  procession. 

WHEN  the  advanced  platoon  of  the  military  reached  the 
church,  the  whole  column  wheeled  backward  by  sections 
from  the  flanks  of  platoons,  forming  a  lane,  bringing  their 
muskets  to  a  reversed  order,  and  resting  the  cheek  on  the 
butt  of  the  piece  in  the  customary  attitude  of  grief.  Through 
the  avenue  thus  formed,  the  corpse,  preceded  by  the  clergy 
of  different  denominations  and  Society  of  Cincinnati,  and 
followed  by  the  relations  of  the  deceased,  and  different  pub- 
lic bodies,  advanced  to  the  church,  the  band,  with  drums 
muffled,  playing  all  the  time  a  pensive,  solemn  air. 

FUNERAL  ORATION. 

ON  a  stage  erected  in  the  portico  of  Trinity  Church,  Mr. 
GOUVERNEUR  MORRIS,  having  four  of  General  Hamilton's 
sons,  the  eldest  about  sixteen  and  the  youngest  about  six 
years  of  age,  with  him,  rose  and  delivered  to  the  immense 
concourse  in  front  an  extemporary  Oration,  which,  being 
pronounced  slowly  and  impressively,  was  easily  committed 
to  memory,  and  being  very  soon  afterwards  placed  on  pa- 
per, is  presumed  to  be  correct  even  to  the  language. 

FELLOW-CITIZENS, 

IF  on  this  sad,  this  solemn  occasion,  I  should  endeavour 
to  move  your  commiseration,  it  would  be  doing  injustice  to 
that  sensibility  which  has  been  so  generally  and  so  justly  ma- 
nifested. Far  from  attempting  to  excite  your  emotions,  I 
must  try  to  repress  my  own,  and  yet  I  fear  that  instead  of 
the  language  of  a  public  speaker,  you  will  hear  only  the 

G 


(42) 

lamentations  of  a  bewailing  friend.  But  I  will  struggle  with 
my  bursting  heart,  to  pourtray  that  Heroic  Spirit,  which  has 
flown  to  the  mansions  of  bliss. 

STUDENTS  of  Columbia— he  was  in  the  ardent  pursuit  of 
knowledge  in  your  academic  shades,  when  the  first  sound  of 
^  the  American  war  called  him  to  the  field — -A  young  and  un- 
protected volunteer,  such  was  his  zeal  and  so  brilliant  his 
service,  that  we  heard  his  name  before  we  knew  his  person. — 
It  seemed  as  if  God  had  called  him  suddenly  into  existence, 
that  he  might  assist  to  save  a  world. 

THE  penetrating  eye  of  Washington  soon  perceived  the 
manly  spirit  which  animated  his  youthful  bosom.  By  that 
excellent  judge  of  men  he  was  selected  as  an  Aid,  and  thus 
he  became  early  acquainted  with,  and  was  a  principal  actor 
in,  the  most  important  scenes  of  our  Revolution. 

AT  the  siege  of  York,  he  pertinaciously  insisted,  and  he 
obtained  the  command  of  a  Forlorn  Hope.  He  stormed  the 
redoubt ;  but  let  it  be  recorded,  that  not  one  single  man  of 
the  enemy  perished.  His  gallant  troops,  emulating  the  hero- 
ism of  their  chief,  checked  the  uplifted  arm,  and  spared  a 
foe  no  longer  resisting*  Here  closed  his  military  career* 

SHORTLY  after  the  war,  your  favour- no,  your  discern- 
ment, called  him  to  public  office.  You  sent  him  to  the  con- 
vention at  Philadelphia :  he  there  assisted  in  forming  that 
constitution  which  is  now  the  bond  of  our  union,  the  shield 
of  our  defence,  and  the  source  of  our  prosperity.  In  sign- 
ing that  compact  he  exprest  his  apprehension  that  it  did  not 
contain  sufficient  means  of  strength  for  its  own  preservation ; 
and  that  in  consequence  we  should  share  the  fate  of  many 
ether  republics,  and  pass  through  Anarchy  to  Despotism* 


(43) 

We  hoped  better  things.  We  confided  in  the  good  sense  of 
the  American  people  ;  and  above  all  we  trusted  in  the  pro- 
tecting  Providence  of  the  Almighty,  On  this  important 
subject  he  never  concealed  his  opinion.  He  disdained  con- 
cealment. Knowing  the  purity  of  his  heart,  he  bore  it  as 
it  were  in  his  hand,  exposing  to  every  passenger  its  inmost 
recesses.  This  generous  indiscretion  subjected  him  to  cen- 
jsure  from  misrepresentation.  His  speculative  opinions  were 
treated  as  deliberate  designs ;  and  yet  you  all  know  how  strenu- 
ous, how  unremitting  were  his  efforts  to  establish  and  to  pre- 
serve the  constitution.  If  then  his  opinion  was  wrong,  pardon, 
ph !  pardon  that  single  error,  in  a  life  devoted  to  your  service, 

AT  the  time  when  our  government  was  organized ,  we 
were  without  funds,  though  not  without  resources.  To  call 
them  into  action,  and  establish  order  iu  the  finances,  Wash- 
ington sought  for  splendid  talents,  for  extensive  information, 
and,  above  all,  he  sought  for  sterling,  incorruptible  integrity- 
All  these  he  found  in  Hamilton. — The  system  then  adopted 
has  been  the  subject  of  much  animadversion.  If  it  be  not 
without  a  fault,  let  it  be  remembered  that  nothing  human  is 
perfect— Recollect  the  circumstances  of  the  moment — recoU 
lect  the  conflict  of  opinion — and  above  all,  remember  that 
the  minister  of  a  republic  must  bend  to  the  will  of  the  people* 
The  administration  which  Washington  formed,  was  one  of 
*  the  best  that  any  country  was  ever  blest  with.  And  the  re- 
sult was  a  rapid  advance  in  power  and  prosperity,  of  which 
there  is  no  example  in  any  other  age  or  nation.  The  par(: 

which  Hamilton  bore  is  universally  known. 

i 

His  unsuspecting  confidence  in  professions  which  he  be* 
lieved  to  be  sincere,  led  him  to  trust  too  much  to  the  undeserv- 
ing. This  exposed, him  to  misrepresentation.  He  felt  him- 
self obliged  to  resign — The  care  of  a  rising  family,  and  the 


(44) 

narrowness  of  his  fortune,  made  it  a  duty  to  return  to  his 
profession  for  their  support.  But  though  he  was  compelled 
to  abandon  public  life,  never,  no,  never  for  a  moment  did  he 
abandon  the  public  service.  He  never  lost  sight  of  your  in- 
terests—I declare  to  you,  before  that  God  in  whose  pre- 
sence we  are  now  so  especially  assembled,  that  in  his  most 
private  and  confidential  conversations,  the  single  objects  of 
discussion  and  consideration  were  your  freedom  and  happi- 
ness. 

You  well  remember  the  state  of  things  which  again  called 
forth  Washington  from  his  retreat  to  lead  your  armies.  You 
know  that  he  asked  for  Hamilton  to  be  his  second  ^in  com- 
mand. That  venerable  sage  well  knew  the  dangerous  inci- 
dents of  a  military  profession,  and  he  felt  the  hand  of  time 
pinching  life  at  its  source.  It  was  probable  that  he  would 
soon  be  removed  from  the  scene,  and  that  his  second  would 
succeed  vto  the  command.  He  knew,  by  experience,  the 
importance  of  that  place — and  he  thought  the  sword  of 
America  might  safely  be  confided  to  the  hand  which  now 
lies  cold  in  that  coffin.  Oh  !  my  fellow-citizens,  remember 
this  solemn  testimonial,  that  he  was  not  ambitious.  Yet  he 
was  charged  with  ambition ;  and  wounded  by  the  imputa- 
tion, when  he  laid  down  his  command,  he  declared,  in  the 
proud  independence  of  his  soul,  that  he  never  would  accept 
of  any  office,  unless  in  a  foreign  war  he  should  be  called  on 
to  expose  his  life  in  defence  of  his  country.  This  determin- 
ation was  immovable.  It  was  his  fault  that  his  opinions  and 
his  resolutions  could  not  be  changed.  Knowing  his  own 
firm  purpose,  he  was  indignant  at  the  charge  that  he  sought 
for  place  or  power.  He  was  ambitious  only  of  glory,  but 
he  was  deeply  solicitous  for  you.  For  himself  he  feared 
nothing,  but  he  feared  that  bad  men  might,  by  false  profes- 
sions, acquire  your  confidence,  and  abuse  it  to  your  ruin. 


(45) 

BRETHREN  of  the  Cincinnati — There  lies  our  chief! 
Let  him  still  be  our  model.  Like  him,  after  long  and  faith- 
ful public  service,  let  us  cheerfully  perform  the  social  duties 
of  private  life.  Oh !  he  was  mild  and  gentle.  In  him  there 
was  no  offence ;  no  guile — his  generous  hand  and  heart  were 
open  to  all. 

GENTLEMEN  of  the  Bar — You  have  lost  your  brightest 
ornament.  Cherish  and  imitate  his  example.  While,  like 
him,  with  justifiable,  withlaudible  zeal,  you  pursue  the  in- 
terests of  your  clients,  remember,  like  him,  the  eternal 
principles  of  justice. 

FELLOW-CITIZENS — You  have  long  witnessed  his  pro- 
fessional conduct,  and  felt  his  unrivalled  eloquence.  You 
know  how  well  he  performed  the  duties  of  a  Citizen — you 
know  that  he  never  courted  your  favour  by  adulation,  or  the 
sacrifice  of  his  own  judgment.  You  have  seen  him  con- 
tending against  you,  and  saving  your  dearest  interests,  as 
it  were,  in  spite  of  yourselves.  And  you  now  feel  and  en- 
joy the  benefits  resulting  from  the  firm  energy  of  his  con- 
duct. Bear  this  testimony  to  the  memory  of  my  departed 
friend.  I  CHARGE  YOU  TO  PROTECT  HIS  FAME  It  is  all 

he  has  left all  that  these  poor  orphan  children  will  inherit 

from  their  father.  But,  my  countrymen,  that  Fame  may  be 
a  rich  treasure  to  you  also.  Let  it  be  the  test  by  which  to 
examine  those  who  solicit  your  favour.  Disregarding  pro- 
fessions, view  their  conduct,  and  on  a  doubtful  occasion, 
ask,  Would  Hamilton  have  done  this  thing  ? 

You  all  know  how  he  perished.  On  this  last  scene,  I  can- 
not, I  must  not  dwell.  It  might  excite  emotions  too  strong 
for  your  better  judgment.  Suffer  not  your  indignation  to  lead 
to  any  act  which  might  again  offend  the  insulted  majesty  of 


(46) 

the  law ;  on  his  part,  as  from  his  lips,  though  with  my  voice 
—for  his  voice  you  will  hear  no  more,— -let  me  entreat  you 
to  respect  yourselves. 

AND  now,  ye  ministers  of  the  everlasting  God,  perform 
your  holy  office,  and  commit  these  ashes  of  our  departed 
brother  to  the  bosom  of  the  Grave ! 


THE  oration  being  finished  the  corpse  was  carried  to  the 
grave,  where  the  usual  funeral  service  was  performed  by  the 
Reverend  Bishop  Moore.  The  troops  who  had  entered  the 
church-yard,  formed  an  extensive  hollow  square,  and  ter- 
minated the  solemnities  with  three  vollies  over  the  grave. 

DURING  the  procession  there  was  a  regular  discharge  of 
minute  guns  from  the  Battery,  by  a  detachment  from  the 
regiment  of  artillery.  The  different  merchant  vessels  in  the 
harbour  wore  their  colours  half  mast,  both  this  and  the  pre- 
ceding day. 

His  Britannic  Majesty's  ship  of  war  Boston,  Capt.  Doug, 
lass,  at  anchor  within  the  Hook,  appeared  in  mourning  the 
whole  morning,  and  at  10  o'clock  she  commenced  firing  mi- 
nute guns,  which  were  continued  48  minutes.  His  Majesty's 
packet  Lord  Charles  Spencer,  Capt.  Cotesworth,  also  was  in 
mourning,  and  fired  an  equal  number  of  guns.  The  French 
frigates  Cybelle  and  Didon,  were  also  put  into  full  mourn- 
ing both  this  and  the  preceding  day,  with  yards  peeked ; 
they  also  fired  minute  guns  during  the  procession.  These 
marks  of  attention  will  be  gratefully  received  by  our  fellow- 
citizens,  as  evidence  how  highly  the  deceased  was  respected 
and  esteemed  by  the  French  and  English  officers. 

END  OF  PART  I. 


(  47) 

A  COLLECTION,  6fc. 


* 

NML 


THE  following  extracts  from  the  several  daily  papers,  will 
serve  to  show  the  strong  impression  which  the  death  of 
General  Hamilton  made  on  the  hearts  of  his  fellow-citizens  ; 
those  who  knew  him  best. 

THE    EVENING   POST. 

WITH  emotions  that  we  have  not  the  hand  to  inscribe, 
have  we  to  announce  the  death  of  ALEXANDER  HA- 
MILTON. He  was  cut  off  in  the  48th  year  of  his  age,  in 
the  full  vigour  of  his  faculties,  and  in  the  midst  of  all  his  use- 
fulness. 

WE  have  not  the  firmness  to  depict  this  melancholy,  heart- 
rending event.  Now — when  death  has  extinguished  all  party 
animosity,  the  gloom  that  over-spreads  every  countenance, 
the  sympathy  that  pervades  every  bosom,  bear  irresistable 
testimony  of  the  esteem  and  respect  all  maintained  for  him ; 
of  the  love  all  bore  him;  and  assure  us  that  an  impression 
has  been  made  by  his  loss  which  no  time  can  efface.  It 
becomes  us  not  to  enter  into  particulars  ;  we  have  no  doubt, 
that,  in  compliance  with  the  universal  anxiety  of  our  citizens, 
a  statement  will  soon  be  exhibited  to  them  containing  all  the 
circumstances  necessary  to  enable  them  to  form  a  just  opi- 
nion of  this  tragic  scene.  In  the  mean  time  we  offer  the  fol- 
lowing letter  that  we  have  received  from  the  Reverend 
Bishop  Moore.  The  testimony  which  this  pious  and  vener-. 

H 


(48) 

able  Clergyman  bears  to  the  virtues  of  the  deceased,  will, 
we  are  sure,  not  be  lost  on  a  discerning,  community. 


TO  THE  EDITOR  OF  THE  EVENING  POST. 

Thursday  Evening,  July  12. 

MR.  COLEMAN, 

THE  public  mind  being  extremely  agitated  by  the  melan- 
choly fate  of  that  great  man,  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON,  I 
have  thought  it  would  be  grateful  to  my  fellow-citizens, 
would  provide  against  misrepresentation,  and,  perhaps,  be 
conducive  to  the  advancement  of  the  cause  of  religion,  were 
I  to  give  a  narrative  of  some  facts  which  have  fallen  under 
my  own  observation,  during  the  time  which  elapsed  between 
the  fatal  duel  and  his  departure  out  of  this  world. 

YESTERDAY  morning,  immediately  after  he  was  brought 
from  Hoboken  to  the  house  of  Mr.  Bayard,  at  Greenwich,  a 
message  was  sent  informing  me  of  the  sad  event,  accompa- 
nied by  a  request  from  General  Hamilton,  that  I  would 
come  to  him  for  the  purpose  of  administering  the  Holy  Com- 
munion. I  went  j  but  being  desirous  to  afford  time  for  se- 
rious reflection,  and  conceiving  that  under  existing  circum- 
stances, it  would  be  right  and  proper  to  avoid  every  appear- 
ance of  precipitancy  in  performing  one  of  the  most  solemn 
offices  of  our  religion,  I  did  not  then  comply  with  his  de- 
sire»  At  one  o'clock  I  was  again  called  on  to  visit  him.. 
Upon  my  entering  the  room  and  approaching  his  bed,  with 
the  utmost  calmness  and  composure  he  said,  "  My  dear  Sir, 
you  perceive  my  unfortunate  situation,  and  no  doubt  have 
been  made  acquainted  with  the  circumstances  which  led  to 
it.  It  is  my  desire  to  receive  the  Communion  at  your  hands^ 


(49) 

I  hope  you  will  not  conceive  there  is  any  impropriety  in  my 
request.57     He  added,  "  It  has  for  some  time  past  been  the 
wish  of  my  heart,  and  it  was  my  intention  to  take  an  early 
opportunity  of  uniting  myself  to  the  church,  by  the  recep- 
tion of  that  holy  ordinance."     I  observed  to  him,  that  he 
must  be  very  sensible  of  the  delicate  and  trying  situation  in 
which  I  was  then  placed  ;  that  however  desirous  I  might  be 
to  afford  consolation  to  a  fellow  mortal  iib  distress  ;  still,  it 
was  my  duty  as  a  minister  of  the  gospel,  to  hold  up  the  law 
of  God  as  paramount  to  all  other  law ;  and  that,  therefore, 
.under  the  influence  of  such  sentiments,  I  must  unequivocal- 
ly condemn  the  practice  which  had  brought  him  to  his  pre- 
sent unhappy  condition.     He  acknowledged  the  propriety  of 
these  sentiments,  and  declared  that  he  viewed  the  late  trans- 
action with  sorrow  and   contrition.     I   then  asked   him, 
"  Should  it  please  God,  to  restore  you  to  health,  Sir,  will 
you  never  be  again  engaged  in  a  similar  transaction?  and 
will  you  employ  all  your  influence  in  society  to  discounte- 
nance this   barbarous  custom  ?"  His  answer  was,  "  That, 
;Sir,  is  my  deliberate  intention/' 

I  PROCEEDED  to  converse  with  hina  on  the  subject  of  his 
receiving  the  Communion ;  and  told  him  that  with  respect 
to  the  qualifications  of  those  who  wished  to  become  partak- 
ers of  that  holy  ordinance,  my  inquiries  could  not  be  made 
in  language  more  expressive  than  that  which  was  used  by 
xwr  .Church.—"  Do  you  sincerely  repen,t  of  your  sins  past  ? 
Have  you  a  lively  faith  in  God?s  mercy  through  Christ,  with 
a  thankful  remembrance  of  the  death  of  Christ?  And  are 
you  disposed  to  live  in  love  and  charity  with  all  men  ?"  He 
lifted  up  his  hands  and  said,  "  With  the  utmost  sincerity  of 
heart  I  can  answer  those  questions  in  the  affirmative — I  have 
no  ill  will  against  Col.  Burr.  I  met  him  with  a  fixed  resolu- 
tion to  do  him  no  harm — I  forgive  all  that  happened."  J 


(50) 

then  observed  to  him,  that  the  terrors  of  the  divine  law  were 
to  be  announced  to  the  obdurate  and  impenitent :  but  that 
the  consolations  of  the  Gospel  were  to  be  offered  to  the  hum- 
ble and  contrite  heart :  that  I  had  no  reason  to  doubt  his 
sincerity,  and  would  proceed  immediately  to  gratify  his 
wishes.  The  Communion  was  then  administered,  which 
he  received  with  great  devotion,  and  his  heart  afterwards 
appeared  to  be  perfectly  at  rest.  I  saw  him  again  this 
morning,  when,  with  his  last  faultering  words,  he  express- 
ed a  strong  confidence  in  the  mercy  of  God  through  the  in- 
tercession  of  the  Redeemer.  I  remained  with  him  until  2 
o'clock  this  afternoon,  when  death  closed  the  awful  scene — : 
he  expired  without  a  struggle,  and  almost  without  a  groan, 

BY  reflecting  on  this  melancholy  event,  let  the  humble 
believer  be  encouraged  ever  to  hold  fast  that  precious  faith 
which  is  the  only  source  of  true  consolation  in  the  last  ex- 
tremity of  nature.  Let  the  infidel  be  persuaded  to  abandon 
his  opposition  to  that  gospel  which  the  strong,  inquisitive, 
and  comprehensive  mind  of  a  HAMILTON  embraced,  in  his 
last  moments,  as  the  truth  from  heaven.  Let  those  who 
are  disposed  to  justify  the  practice  of  duelling,  be  induced, 
by  this  simple  narrative,  to  view  with  abhorrence  that  CUST 
torn  which  has  occasioned  an  irreparable  loss  to  a  worthy 
and  most  afflicted  family :  which  has  deprived  his  friends 
of  a  beloved  companion,  his  profession  of  one  of  its  bright- 
est ornaments,,  and  his  country  of  a  great  statesman  and  a 
real  patriot. 

With  great  respect, 

I  remain  your  friend  and  servant, 

BENJAMIN  MOORfi. 


(51) 

THOUGH  not  in  chronological  order,  yet  here  may  be  the 
most  proper  place  for  the  Rev'd  Dr.  Mason's  letter,  as  it  re* 
lates  to  the  same  subject. 

TO  THE  EDITOR  OF  THE  EVENING  POST. 

SIR, 

HAVING  read,  in  the  Commercial  -Advertiser  of  the 
16th,  a  very  imperfect  account  of  my  conversation  with  Ge- 
neral Hamilton,  the  day  previous  to  his  decease,  I  judge  it 
my  duty  to  lay  the  following  narrative  before  the  public, 

• 

ON  the  morning  of  Wednesday,  the  llth  inst.  shortly  af- 
ter the  rumour  of  the  General's  injury  had  created  an  alarm 
in  the  city,  a  note  from  Dr.  Post  informed  me  that  "  he 
was  extremely  ill  at  Mr.  Wm.  Bayard's,  and  expressed  a 
particular  desire  to  see  me  as  soon  as  possible."  I  went 
immediately.'*'  The  exchange  of  melancholy  salutation,  on 
entering  the  General's  apartment,  was  succeeded  by  a  si- 
lence which  he  broke  by  saying,  that  he  "  had  been  anxious 
to  see  me,  and  have  the  sacrament  administered  to  him . 
and  that  this  was  still  his  wish."  I  replied,  that  "  it  gave 
me  unutterable  pain  to  receive  from  him  any  request  to 
which  I  could  not  accede :  that,  in  the  present  instance,  a 
compliance  was  incompatible  with  all  my  obligations ;  as  it 
is  a  principle  in  our  churches  never  to  administer  the  Lord's 

*  PERHAPS  it  may  not  be  amiss,  in  order  that  no  misapprehension  should 
be  created  by  the  letters  themselves,  which  are  not  very  explicit  on  that 
point;  that  Bishop  Moore  was  first  sent  for,  but  left  the  house  without 
complying  at  that  time  with  Gen.  Hamilton's  wish  ;  that  Dr.  Mason  was 
then  sent  for,  who,  as  he  says  in  his  letter,  told  him  he  could  not  accede  to 
his  request ;  that  the  Bishop  was  sent  for  a  second  time,  who  came  and 
administered  the  sacrament,  as  related  by  himself.  This  explanatory  note 
is  added  because  a  misapprehension  of  facts,  gave  rise  at  the  time  to  some 
small  altercation  between  anonymous  writers  in  one  of  our  daily  prints. 


(52) 

Supper  privately  to  any  person  under  any  circumstances/5 
He  urged  me  no  further.     I  then  remarked  to  him,  that, 
41  the  Holy  Communion  is  an  exhibition  and  pledge  of  tfye 
mercies  which  the  Son  of  God  has  purchased ;  that  the  ab- 
sence of  the  sign  does  not  exclude  from  the  mercies  signified  ; 
which  were  accessible  to  him  by  faith  in  their  gracious  au- 
thor."    "  I  am  aware,"  said  he,  "  of  that.     It  is  only  as  a 
sign  that  I  wanted  it."     A  short  pause  ensued.     I  resumed 
the  discourse,  by  observing  that  "  I  had  nothing  to  address 
to  him  in  his  affliction,  but  that  same  gospel  of  the  grace  of 
God,  which  it  is  my  office  to  preach  to  the  most  obscure  and 
illiterate  :  that  in  the  sight  of  God  all  men  are  on  a  level,  as 
all  have  sinned,  and  come  short  of  his  glory  ;  and  that  they 
must  apply  to  him  for  pardon  and  life,  as  sinners,  whose 
only  refuge  is  in  his  grace  reigning  by  righteousness  through 
our  Lord  Jesus  Christ"     "  I  perceive  it  to  be  so,?>  said  he  -, 
u  I  am  a  sinner :  I  look  to  his  mercy."     I  then  adverted  to 
"  the  infinite  merit  of  the  Redeemer,  as  the  propitiation  for 
sin,  the  sole  ground  of  our  acceptance  with  God ;  the  sole 
channel  of  his  favour  to   us  j  and  cited  the  following  pas- 
sages of  scripture  : — There  is  no  other  name  given  under  hea- 
ven among  men,  "whereby  ive  must  be  saved,  but  the  name  of 
Jesus.     He  is  able  to  save  them  to  the  uttermost  ^vho  come  un~ 
to  God  by  him,  seeing  he  ever  liveth  to  make  intercession  for 
them.     The  blood  of  Jesus  Christ  cleanseth  from  all  sin?'' 
This  last  passage  introduced  the  affair  of  the  duel,  on  which 
I  reminded  the  General,  that  he  was  not  to  be  instructed  as 
to  its  moral  aspect,  that  the  precious  blood  of  Christ  was  as  ef- 
fectual and  as  necessary  to  wash  away  the  transgression  which 
had  involved  him  in  suffering,  as  any  other  transgression  ; 
and  that  he  must  there,  and  there  alone,  seek  peace  for  his 
conscience,  and  a  hope  that  should  "  not  make  him  asham- 
ed"    He  assented,  with  strong  emotion,  to  these  represen- 
tations, and  declared  his  abhorrence  of  the  whole  transac- 


(53) 

tion.  "  It  was  always,"  added  he,  "  against  my  principles* 
I  used  every  expedient  to  avoid  the  interview ;  but  I  have 
found,  for  some  time  past,  that  my  life  must  be  exposed  to 
that  man.  I  went  to  the  field  determined  not  to  take  his 
life."  He  reapeated  his  disavowal  of  all  intention  to  hurt 
Mr.  Burr ;  the  anguish  of  his  mind  in  recollecting  what  had 
passed ;  and  his  humble  hope  of  forgiveness  from  his  God. 
I  recurred  to  the  topic  of  the  divine  compassion  ;  the  free- 
dom of  pardon  in  the  Redeemer  Jesus  to  perishing  sinners. 
"  That  grace,  my  dear  General,  whieh  brings  salvation,  is 
rich^  rich" — "  Yes,"  interrupted  he,  "  it  is  rich  grace." 
"  And  on  that  grace,"  continued  I,  "  a  sinner  has  the  high- 
est  encouragement  to  repose  his  confidence,  because  it  is 
tendered  to  him  upon  the  surest  foundation  ;  the  scripture 
testifying  that  we  have  redemption  through  the  blood  of  Jesus-) 
the  forgiveness  of  sins  according  to  the  richness  of  his  grace." 
Here  the  General,  letting  go  my  hand,  which  he  had  held 
from  the  moment  I  sat  down  at  his  bed-side,  clasped  his 
hands  together,  and,  looking  up  towards  heaven,  said,  with 
emphasis,  "  I  have  a  tender  reliance  on  the  mercy  of  the 
Almighty,  through  the  merits  of  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ." 
He  replaced  his  hand  in  mine,  and  appearing  somewhat 
spent,  closed  his  eyes.  A  little  after,  he  fastened  them  on 
me,  and  I  proceeded.  "  The  simple  truths  of  the  Gospel, 
my  dear  Sir,  which  require  no  abstruse  investigation,  but 
faith  in  the  veracity  of  God  who  cannot  lie,  are  best  suited 
to  your  present  condition,  and  they  are  full  of  consolation." 
"  I  feel  them  to  be  so,"  replied  he.  I  then  repeated  these 
texts  of  scripture: — It  is  a  faithful  saying,  and  worthy  of  all 
acceptation,  that  Christ  Jesus  came  into  the  world  to  save  sin- 
ners, and  of  sinners  the  chief.  I,  even  I,  am  he  that  blotteth 
out  thy  transgressions  for  mine  own  sake,  and  will  not  remem- 
ber thy  sins.  Come  now,  and  let  us  reason  together,  saith  the 
Lord ;  though  your  sins  be  as  scarlet,  they  shall  be  white  as 


(54) 

snow  ;  though  they  be  red  like  crimson,  they  shall  be  as  wool* 
"  This,"  said  he,  "  is  my  support.  Pray  for  me."  "  ShaU 
I  pray  with  you?"  "  Yes."  I  prayed  with  him,  and  heard 
him  whisper  as  I  went  along ;  which  I  supposed  to  be  his 
concurrence  with  the  petitions.  At  the  conclusion  he  said, 
"  Amen.  God  grant  it." 

BEING  about  to  part  with  him,  I  told  him  "  I  had  one  re- 
quest to  make."  He  asked  "  what  it  was  r"  I  answered, 
"  that  whatever  might  be  the  issue  of  his  affliction,  he  would 
give  his  testimony  against  the  practice  of  duelling."  "  I 
will,"  said  he,  "  I  have  done  it.  If  that"  evidently  anti- 
cipating the  event,  u  if  that  be  the  issue,  you  will  find  it  in 
writing.  If  it  please  God  that  I  recover,  I  shall  do  it  in  a 
manner  which  will  effectually  put  me  out  of  its  reach  in  fu- 
ture-" I  mentioned,  once  more,  the  importance  of  re- 
nouncing every  other  dependence  for  the  eternal  world,  but 
the  mercy  of  God  in  Christ  Jesus  ;  with  a  particular  refer- 
ence to  the  catastrophe  of  the  morning.  The  General  was 
affected,  and  said,  "  Let  us  not  pursue  the  subject  any  fur- 
ther, it  agitates  me."  He  laid  his  hands  upon  his  breast, 
with  symptoms  of  uneasiness,  which  indicated  an  increased 
difficulty  of  speaking.  I  then  took  my  leave.  He  pressed 
my  hand  affectionately,  and  desired  to  see  me  again  at  a 
proper  interval.  As  I  was  retiring,  he  lifted  up  his  hands 
in  the  attitude  of  prayer,  and  said  feebly,  "  God  be  merci- 
ful to ."  His  voice  sunk,  so  that  I  heard  not  the  rest 

distinctly,  but  understood  him  to   quote  the  words  of  the 
publican  in  the  gospel,  and  to  end  the  sentence  with,  "  me 


I  SAW  him,  a  second  time,  on  the  morning  of  Thursday; 
but  from  his  appearance,  and  what  I  had  heard,  supposing 
that  he  could  not  speak  without  severe  effort,  I  had  no  con- 


(55) 

versation  with  him.  I  prayed  for  a  moment  at  his  bed  side, 
in  company  with  his  overwhelmed  family  and  friends  ;  and 
for  the  rest,  was  one  of  the  mourning  spectators  of  his  com- 
posure and  dignity  in  suffering.  His  mind  remained  in  its 
former  state  :  and  he  viewed  with  calmness  his  approaching 
dissolution.  I  left  him  between  twelve  and  one,  and  at  two, 
as  the  public  know,  he  breathed  his  last. 

I  am,  Sir, 

With  much  respect, 

Your  obedient  servant, 

J.  M.  MASON. 

New-Tor  k)  July  18^,  1804. 


THE  DAILY  ADVERTISER. 

IT  is  with  sentiments  of  the  deepest  regret  that  we  an- 
nounce  to  the  public  the  decease  of  the  great  and  estimable 
General  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON.  No  event  since  the 
death  of  the  illustrious  Washington  has  filled  the  public  mind 
with  more  painful  solicitude,  or  so  much  called  forth  the 
general  sympathy  and  grief,  as  the  event  we  now  record. 
The  loss  of  a  character,  so  much  respected  in  his  profession, 
so  esteemed  by  the  public,  so  beloved  in  the  circles  of  pri- 
vate friendship  and  of  domestic  life,  is  beyond  the  power  of 
expression  ;  and  the  manner  of  his  death ! — Alas !  it  can  be 
remembered  only  with  unmingled  horror  and  regret. 

VAIN  were  the  attempt  to  give  even  a  hasty  sketch  of  the 
various,  the  unequalled  merit  of  the  illustrious  deceased — • 


(56) 

the  task  will  be  executed  by  an  abler  hand.     Suffice  it,  un- 
der the  present  impression  of  public  regret,  to  state — • 

THAT,  as  a  soldier,  through  the  whole  of  our  revolutionary 
war,  General  Hamilton  was  eminently  distinguished.  He 
was  one  of  the  few  select  friends  of  the  Commander  in 
Chief,  often  tried  and  as  often  approved.  His  cool  and  ac- 
tive valour  in  storming  the  redoubt  before  York-Town,  will 
never  be  forgotten.  After  such  a  splendid  proof  of  bravery, 
was  it  necessary  again  to  put  it  to  the  test  in  compliance  with 
a  false  notion  of  honour  ? 

As  a  statesman,  Gen.  Hamilton  added  still  greater  honour 
to  his  name.  To  him  are  we  principally  indebted  for  the 
national-  constitution  and  the  system  of  laws  under  which 
we  now  live.  It  was  his  hand  that  traced  the  outlines  of 
our  most  important  municipal  institutions.  To  him  we  owe 
the  plans  for  the  organization  of  our  National  Treasury, 
the  provisions  for  the  payment  of  the  public  debt,  for  the 
establishment  of  the  banks,  of  the  mint,  and  the  whole 
revenue  system  of  our  country. 

As  a  lawyer,  he  was  unrivalled  at  the  bar.  His  talents 
and  eloquence  gave  him  a  decided  ascendancy  in  his  profes- 
sion, which,  however,  was  softened  by  the  most  unaffected 
modesty,  and  the  utmost  courtesy  and  gentleness. 

As  a  man,  no  one  was  more  highly  esteemed  for  his  per- 
fect integrity,  truth,  candour,  and  public  spirit,  than  the  un- 
fortunate deceased.  He  enjoyed  (and  no  man  ever  better 
deserved  it)  the  unlimited  confidence  of  his  friends  and  fel- 
low-citizens. 

As  a  Christian,  we  are  happy  to  add,  he  has  not  left  the 
world  to  doubt  of  his  faith  and  hope.  In  his  last  hours  he 


(57) 

has  put  a  seal  on  his  character,  by  declaring  his  firm  belief 
in  the  merits  and  atonement  of  a  SAVIOUR  ;  by  avowing  his 
trust  in  Redeeming  grace,  and  by  requesting  and  receiving 
in  attestation  of  his  faith,  the  sacrament  of  the  Lord's  Supper. 

HASTY  and  imperfect  as  the  foregoing  outlines  may  be, 
they  will  recal  to  the  public  mind,  those  impressions  of  ex- 
alted merit  which  we  are  sure  will  never  be  obliterated,  will 
never  cease  to  be  cherished  with  a  melancholy  pleasure.  The 
soldier,  the  statesman,  the  man  of  pre-eminent  talents  and 
worth,  is  gone ;  but  his  virtues  will  be  had  in  memory,  will 
be  admired  and  recorded,  wherever  there  is  a  heart  to  feel, 
or  a  tongue  to  repeat  the  eulogy,  due  to  departed  worth, 

WITH  the  deeply  afflicted  consort,  and  the  orphan  chil- 
dren of  the  deceased  general,  the  public  will  sincerely  synv 
pathiae.  Their  loss  is  incalculable.  May  heaven  support 
them  on  this  trying  occasion.  May  they  enjoy  consolations 
from  above  (for  the  world  .can  now  have  few  for  them)  ;  con» 
solations  which  are  neither  few  nor  small,  beyond  the  reach 
of  accident  and  change. 

.SAME  PAPER. 

THE  ceremonies  of  Saturday  were  conducted  according 
to  the  published  arrangements.  The  scene  was  indeed  so- 
lemn and  impressive.  Every  countenance  evinced  a  sorrow 
to  which  only  a  loss  of  the  first  magnitude — an  event  of  the 
most  tragical  nature,  could  give  rise.  Every  mark  of  res- 
pect to  which  departed  worth  has  a  claim,  was  paid  with  at 
fectionate  earnestness. — Business  was  universally  suspended, 
and  the  whole  city  crowded  either  to  perform  or  to  witness  the 
funeral  honours  due  to  the  illustrious  deceased.  About  noon, 
the  different  bodies  forming  the  procession,  having  taken 
their  respective  places,  the  corpse  was  conducted  from  the 


(58) 

house  of  John  B.  Church  Esq.  and  the  whole  began  to  move. 
The  moment  was  deeply  impressive.  Every  thing  conspir- 
ed to  solemnize  the  mind.  The  tolling  of  the  deep-toned 
bells — the  melting  melody  of  the  music — the  slow  and  me- 
lancholy-inspiring pace  of  the  procession — the  appearance 
of  the  sable  coffin  with  its  accompanyments — the  sons  of  the 
deceased,  still  of  tender  age,  clad  in  the  vestments  of  woe, 
and  shedding  the  tear  of  anguish  over  the  fate  of  a  beloved 
father — (Unhappy  youths  !  who  will  now  be  the  guide  of  your 
growing  years,  the  guardian  of  your  budding  virtues  ?)  These, 
with  the  awe-striking  report  of  the  minute  guns,  to  which 
svery  heart  beat  its  sad  response,  rendered  the  whole  a  scene 
of  solemn  woe.  Two  hours  elapsed  before  the  procession 
reached  the  place  of  interment,  owing  to  the  slowness  of 
the  pace  and  length  of  the  rout.  Arrived  at  Trinity  Church, 
the  Hon.  Gouverneur  Morris  ascended  a  stage  prepared  for 
fcim,  and  delivered  to  a  deeply-impressed  audience,  an  ap- 
propriate and  pathetic  address.  He  sketched  the  life,  the 
talents,  the  virtues,  the  civil  and  military  services  of  the  de- 
ceased. He  addressed  himself  particularly  to  the  students 
of  Collumbia  College,  the  gentlemen  of  the  bar,  the  Cin- 
cinnati Society,  and  the  military.  He  adverted  to  the  de- 
plorable cause  of  the  disaster,  by  stating  that  all  were  ac- 
quainted with  it,  and  that  he  could  not  then  say  a  word  on 
the  sad  subject.  The  orator  having  concluded,  the  body 
was  then  interred  with  the  accustomed  military  honours. 
Thus  has  perished,  by  an  untimely  death,  a  patriot  of  ex- 
alted merit,  a  soldier  and  a  civilian  of  pre-eminent  worth. 
Thus  has  America  been  bereft  of  her  second  Washington  ! 


THE  NEW-YORK  GAZETTE. 

LAST  Saturday  were  interred,  with  all  possible  respect^ 
the  remains  of  Gen.  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON,  the  enlighten- 


(59) 

ed  statesman,  the  skilful  lawyer,  the  eloquent  orator,  the  dis- 
interested patriot,  and  the  honest  man.  Never  was  the  sen- 
sibility  of  the  citizens  awakened  to  such  a  degree,  and  ne- 
ver did  they  witness  so  mournful  a  scene.  It  renewed  their 
grief  for  the  death  of  Washington,  to  see  his  friend  and 
counsellor  cut  off  in  the  highest  vigour  of  his  faculties,  and 
the  United  States  deprived  of  their  great  earthly  stay. 

IMMEDIATELY  after  his  decease,  the  bells  announced  that 
he  was  no  more.  On  the  morning  of  the  day  of  his  fune- 
ral, all  the  bells  were  muffled,  and  tolled  froni  six  to  seven 
o'clock.  They  began  again  at  ten,  and  continued  until  the 
procession  reached  the  church.  The  ships  in  the  harbour  ex- 
hibited the  usual  tokens  of  mourning,  and  minute  guns  were 
fired  from  the  forts,  and  from  American  and  foreign  armed 
vessels.  The  bells  again  tolled  from  seven  to  eight  in  the 
evening. 

THE  procession,  consisting  of  the  military,  the  Cincinnati, 
the  clergy  of  all  denominations,  the  gentlemen  of  the  bar 
and  students  at  law,  strangers,  the  different  incorporate  bo- 
dies, the  several  societies,  together  with  the  citizens,  was 
very  large.  All  vied  with  one  another  in  testifying  their 
sense  of  the  worth  of  the  illustrious  man  deceased,  and  the 
irreparable  loss  which  the  country  had  sustained.  The  sides 
of  the  streets  were  crowded,  and  the  windows  were  filled  with 
spectators,  and  many  climbed  up  into  trees  and  got  on 
the  tops  of  houses.  Not  a  smile  was  visible,  and  hardly  a 
whisper  was  to  be  heard,  but  tears  were  seen  rolling  down 
the  cheeks  of  the  affected  multitude. 

WHEN  the  front  of  the  procession  had  advanced  as  far  as 
Trinity  Church,  they  halted ;  and  an  oration  was  delivered 
by  Gouverneur  Morris,  from  a  stage  which  had  been  pre- 
viously erected  in  the  portico  of  the  Church.  The  notice 


(60) 

given  to  the  Orator  was  so  short,  his  own  feelings  and  those 
of  the  audience  so  great,  that  he  was  able  only  to  paint  in 
an  imperfect  manner  the  character  and  services  of  the  first 
and  most  beloved  citizen.  A  little  time  hence,  more  jus- 
tice can  be  done  to  his  transcendent  merits ;  and  the  future 
historian  will  seize  them  with  eagerness  to  adorn  his  page. 

THE  General,  during  his  short  illness,  spoke  with  the  ut- 
most abhorrence  of  the  practice  of  duelling,  and  has  left  his 
testimony  against  it.  This  is  known  to  have  been  long  his 
sentiment.  He  declared  that  he  had  no  ill-will  against  his 
antagonist,  and  had  determined  to  do  him  no  harm ;  pro- 
fessed his  firm  belief  of  the  Christian  religion,  and  his  "  ten- 
der reliance  on  the  mercy  of  Almighty  God  through  the 
merits  of  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ ;"  he  devoutly  received  the 
holy  sacrament,  at  his  own  earnest  request.  The  witness 
of  a  man  of  such  extensive  powers  and  information,  will 
outweigh  that  of  an  host  of  infidels.  This  completes  his 
character,  and  demonstrates  that  he  was  good  as  well  as 
great.  "  How  are  the  mighty  fallen,  and  the  weapons  of 
war  perished !"  "  As  a  man  falleth  before  wicked  men, 
so  fallest  thou :  And  all  the  people  wept  again  over  him." 


THE  AMERICAN  CITIZEN.     (Democratic.) 

General  Hamilton's  Funeral.* — On  Saturday  last  the  re- 
mains of  this  gentleman  were  interred,  accompanied  with 
military  honours,  in  the  family  vault,  Trinity  Church-yard. 

*  At  present  we  shall  say  nothing  of  the  cause  or  manner  of  his  death. 
On  these  points  we  have  much  to  lay  before  the  public  ;  but  prudence 
dictates  silence  until  we  are  furnished  with  correct  information  from  au- 
thentic sources.  The  public  have  an  indubitable  right  to  be  informed  of 
the  cause  and  manner  of  his  lamented  fate.  This  information  is  demanded 
fey  the  feelings  of  our  citizens  ;  by  a  voice  too  powerful  to  be  resisted.  I 
trust  it  will  not  belong  delayed.  Every  incident  of  this  catastrophe  is  in- 
teresting. 


(  61  ) 

ALTHOUGH  the  period  which  elapsed  between  his  death 
and  his  funeral  was  but  short,  yet  the  lively  recollection  of 
his  Revolutionary  services — his  acknowledged  superior  ge- 
nius— his  transcendent  talents — his  private  worth — his  ster- 
ling integrity,  and  the  amiable  frankness  of  his  heart,  excit- 
ed in  our  citizens  an  uncommon  cordiality  and  vigour  to  tes- 
tify their  high  sense  of  these  virtues  by  every  demonstra- 
tion of  respect.  There  was  a  very  general  suspension  of  bu- 
siness, and  the  streets  were  uncommonly  crowded  with  spec- 
tators. 

• 

THE  scene  was  impressive ;  and  what  added  unspeakably 
to  its  solemnity,  was  the  mournful  group  of  tender  boys,  the 
sons,  the  once  hopes  and  joys  of  the  deceased,  who,  with 
tears  gushing  from  their  eyes,  sat  upon  the  stage,  at  the 
feet  of  the  orator,  bewailing  the  loss  of  their  parent !  It  was 
too  much  ;  the  sternest  powers,  the  bloodiest  villain,  could 
not  resist  the  melting  scene.  I  wish  I  could  go  on  and  de- 
scribe the  sensations  I  felt,  and  those  which  were  manifest  on 
every  countenance. 

SAME  PAPER. 

General  Hamilton }s  Death*~The  Editor,  in  all  humility,  asks- 
the  reader  to  accompany  him  through  a  brief  review  of  the 
correspondence j  recently  published,  in  relation  to  the  un- 
happy affair  which  terminated  the  existence  of  the  illustrious 
deceased.  He  enters  upon  this  unpleasant  task  the  more 
readily  and  with  the  more  zeal,  since  he  views,  and  cannot 
but  view,  the  death  of  General  Hamilton  as  a  national  loss, 
and  as  the  inevitable  and  deplorable  effect  of  a  long  meditated 
and  predetermined  system  of  hostility  on  the  part  of  Mr.  Burr 
and  his  confidential  advisers.- 

LEST,  however,  he  may  be  misunderstood  by  some,  and 
knowingly  and  injuriously  misrepresented  by  others,  he 


(62) 

deems  it  fit  to  cause  himself  to  be  clearly  and  distinctly  un- 
derstood. This,  perhaps,  is  an  homage  due  to  the  honest 
errors  of  the  less  liberal  part  of  the  community. 

To  a  few  of  those  with  whom  I  think,  and  act  in  what- 
ever relates  to  the  administration  of  the  State,  and  General 
Governments,  it  may  seem  extraordinary  that  I,  who  while 
the  General  lived  to  give  comfort  to  his  family,  and  splen- 
dour to  his  nation,  was  opposed  to  him  on  some  political 
points,  should,  when  laid  in  the  cold  and  silent  tomb,  be- 
come a  guardian  of*  his  fame,  a  vindicator  of  his  wrongs* 
If  in  the  Republican  party  there  is  one  man  of  this  description, 
(and  I  trust  there  is  not)  I  would  with  diffidence  beg  him 
to  reflect,  and  to  exercise,  with  becoming  dignity  and  mo- 
deration, those  intellectual  powers  which  it  hath  pleased 
God  to  impart  even  to  the  humblest  of  his  image.  I  ask 
only  for  the  privilege  of  thinking,  and  of  expressing  my 
thoughts  with  exemption  from  cruel  and  overbearing  intol- 
erance. A  fixed  determination,  however,  to  enjoy  the  one, 
will  prompt  me  to  a  due  resistance  of  the  other.  I  must 
unthink  what  I  have  thought,  and  unlearn  what  I  know,  be- 
fore I  can  act  the  part  of  a  savage;  and  he  deceives  himself 
who  concludes  that,  in  my  editorial  pursuits,  I  will  be  guided 
by  any  opinions  but  my  own.  With  conscious,  and,  as  I 
think,  becoming  pride,  I  utterly  disclaim  and  renounce  that 
illiberality  which  will  not  award  to  illustrious  merit  its  just 
due.  I  have,  and  always  had,  an  exalted  opinion  of  the 
merits  of  the  deceased,  and  with  unaffected  sincerity  and 
deep  regret  lament  his  loss. 

THIS  opinion  and  this  sentiment,  however,  will  not  be 
construed  by  the  liberal  and  the  enlightened,  into  an  appro- 
bation of  the  political  maxims  of  this  great  statesman,  nor 
into  a  dereliction  of  principles  formerly  maintained,  and  still 
tenaciously  adhered  to.  It  is  the  high  prerogative,  the  dis- 


(63) 

languishing  power  of  the  human  mind,  and  most  honour- 
able to  man,  justly  to  discriminate  in  whatever  relates  to  the 
fame  of  those  pre-eminent  citizens  who  give  character  and 
lustre  to  a  nation.  HAMILTON,  I  believe,  entertained  poli- 
tical opinions  at  variance  with  mine,  and  on  which,  mani- 
fested in  many  instances  by  the  administration  of  Mr. 
Adams,  and,  in  one,,  by  that  of  General  Washington,  I 
cannot,  without  unpleasant  sensations,  reflect.  From  these, 
which  while  living  I  opposed,  I  still  dissent ;  but,  alas !  he 
is  dead,  and  I  cannot  pursue  him  to  the  grave  for  opinions 
HONESTLY  entertained,  calmly  and  dignifiedly  asserted,  lu- 
minously and  instructively  enforced,  and  conveyed  to  the 
public  with  all  the  elegance  of  a  scholar,  and  enriched  with 
all  the  erudition  of  a  distinguished  jurist.  I  leave  it  to  pre- 
sumptuous arrogance,  to  a  species  of  party  rancour  which  I 
disclaim,  to  take  another  course* 

..  f 

So  far  I  differed  from  General  Hamilton  in  political  opi- 
nion ;  but  all  difference  is  now  at  an  end.  Death  has  sival* 
lowed  up  in  victory,  cruel  and  fatal  victory,  the  narrow  isth- 
mus that  separated  from  this  great  luminary,  those  with 
whom  I  act.  I  know  that  ancient  writers  urge  with  force , 
and  propriety,  and  that  modern  politicians  acknowledge,  as 
with  one  accord,  the  necessity  of  frequently  laying  before 
the  people,  by  way  of  admonition,  and  to  put  them  on  their 
guard,  the  vices  of  great  men,  even  after  death  has  destroy- 
ed the  power  of  repetition.  But  were  I  asked  whether  Ge- 
neral Hamilton  had  vices ;  in  the  face  of  the  world,  in  the 
presence  of  my  God,  I  would  answer,  NO.  Like  all  men  he 
sometimes  erred ;  but  I  cannot  admit,  that  even  his  errors 
were  those  of  the  heart.  He  was  human,  and  therefore  not 
perfect.  But  if  we  correctly  judge  of  human  perfection  by 
purity  of  heart,  by  rectitude  of  intention,  I  hesitate  not  to 

K 


(64) 

say,  that,  in  my  opinion,  General  Hamilton  was  most  per- 
fect. 

His  private  virtues,  his  public  services,  his  great  abili- 
ties, involuntarily  excite  in  me  the  warmest  esteem  for  his 
memory. 

OF  his  private  virtues  there  is  no  difference  of  opinion. 
All  men  of  all  parties,  speak  of  them  with  rapture,  and  ac- 
knowledge them  with  admiration.  To  these,  vice  pays  vo- 
luntary homage.  The  plotting,  mischievous  citizen,  whose 
bloody  hand,  guided  by  cool  malignancy,  terminated  his 
existence,  will  acknowledge  them.  In  all  the  private  rela- 
tions of  life  he  was  honest,  faithful,  generous,  and  humane. 
His  heart  was  the  seat  of  every  manly  virtue.  No  man 
ever  impeached  his  integrity  with  any  colour  of  justice.  In 
vain  have  party  collisions  and  rancour  ransacked  public  re- 
cords, and  exhausted  private  inquisition  for  a  blemish.  The 
fatal  catastrophe  proves,  that,  like  Aristides,  he  chose  to 
yield  his  life,  rather  than  his  integrity.  SUCH  A  MAN,  what* 
ever  were  his  political  opinions,  irresistibly  commands  our 
esteem. 

His  public  services  were  many,  splendid,  and  great. 
From  these,  nothing  but  deplorable  infatuation,  nothing 
but  fiery  zeal,  unmixt  with  a  ray  of  reflection,  can  with-hold 
a  lasting  glow  of  admiration  and  gratitude.  The  friend  of 
liberty,  he  who  for  a  moment  reflects  that  out  of  the  revolu- 
tionary contest,  that  chaos  of  clashing  elements,  arose  A 
WORLD  OF  FREEDOM,  cannot  but  venerate  the  memory  of 
those  who,  as  it  were,  created  it.  In  this  most  glorious,  most 
useful,  most  splendid  of  earthly  scenes,  HAMILTON  perform- 
ed a  conspicuous — shall  I  not  say  a  disinterested,  a  patriotic 


(  65  ) 

part  ?  Scarcely  arrived  at  the  "  gristle  of  manhood  ;"  glow- 
ing with  patriotic  fire,  with  military  ardour  ;  he  joined  the 
creative  phalanx,  and  signalized  himself  by  constancy,  by 
perseverance,  by  valour  ;  and  irradiated,  with  the  rays  of 
his  superior  genius,  all  within  the  sphere  of  its  presence. 
His  revolutionary  services  entitle  him  to  our  affection,  and 
will  endear  his  memory  to  all  who  are  sincerely  attached  to 
our  independence. 

His  civil  was  more  brilliant  than  his  military  career.  His 
early  efforts  as  a  "statesman,  excel  in  utility  and  lustre  his 
exertions  in  the  field.  Perhaps  to  him,  more  than  to  any 
other  man,  we  are  indebted  for  the  excellent  constitution 
under  which  we  live.  Whatever  aberrations  from  republi- 
can maxims,  rigorous  inquisition  may  have  discovered  in 
his  efforts  in  the  convention,  I  know  not ;  but  this  I  may 
predict,  from  what  we  do  know,  that  his  numerous  essays, 
under  the  title  of"  FEDERALIST,"  advocating  the  principles 
and  enforcing  the  adoption  of  the  constitution,  will  immor- 
talize his  name,  and  render  him  illustrious  when  every  me- 
mento of  the  cavilling  witlings  of  the  day  shall  be  swept 
from  the  records  of  time,  and  buried  in  everlasting  forget- 
fulness.  I  think  I  am  not  incorrect  when  I  say,  that  these 
essays  are  the  ablest  political  papers  in  the  world.  They  are 
replete  with  lessons  of  wisdom',  clothed  in  unusual  elegance. 
They  are  the  production  of  a  mind  naturally  capacious  and 
enriched  with  all  the  lore  of  learning.  I  read  them  with 
renewed  pleasure  and  instruction.  Amidst  the  afflictions  of 
the  relatives  of  the  deceased,  it  cannot  but  be  pleasing  to 
witness  statesmen  and  jurists  *  resorting  to  this  elementary 
work  as  an  unerring  standard  by  which  to  test  and  determine 
matters  in  controversy. 

*  See  Tucker's  Blackstone  and  Debates  in  Congress- 


(66) 

THE  MERCANTILE  ADVERTISER. 

THE  remains  of  the  late  General  HAMILTON  were  on  Satur- 
day afternoon  deposited  in  the  "  house  appointed  for  all  liv- 
ing*" The  mournful  procession  moved  from  his  friend  Mr. 
Church's  in  Robinson-street,  about  eleven  o'clock,  in  the  or- 
der directed  by  the  Committee  of  Arrangements  ;  and  it  was 
not  until  near  two  that  the  rear  reached  Trinity  ChuVch,  so 
numerous  were  the  citizens  who  joined  in  paying  this  last 
tribute  to  the  memory  of  the  illustrious  dead.  We  never 
witnessed,  in  this  country  or  in  Europe,  on  any  similar  oc- 
casion, so  general  a  sorrow,  such  an  universal  regret,  or 
a  ceremonial  more  awful  and  impressive. 

THE  arduous  task  of  delivering  an  Oration  over  the  body 
of  the  deceased,  was  committed  to  the  splendid  talents  of 
Mr.  Gouverneur  Morris ;  and  he  executed  it  in  a  manner 
highly  honourable  to  his  feelings.  He  sought  not,  in  the 
course  of  it,  to  inflame  those  passions  in  the  people  which 
had  already  risen  to  no  ordinary  height,  but  touched  lightly 
on  the  circumstance  which  produced  the  lamentable  event ; 
and  dwelt  with  peculiar  felicity  on  the  public  and  private 
virtues,  the  uncommon  talents,  the  great  usefulness,  the 
inflexible  integrity,  and  the  real  patriotism  of  his  departed 
friend.  His  discourse  was  necessarily  short,  for  his  sensibili- 
ty sometimes  almost  deprived  him  of  the  power  of  utterance. 


THE  COMMERCIAL  ADVERTISER, 

THUS  has  the  last  kind  office  been  performed  by  our  be- 
reaved, afflicted  city,  to  the  remains  of  our  country's  bright- 
est ornament.  In  the  long  train  of  mourners  on  this  melan- 
choly occasion,  every  countenance  was  covered  with  sadness, 
every  heart  oppressed  with  sorrow.  Never,  but  at  the  loss 


(67) 

of  our  beloved  WASHINGTON,  has  the  voice  of  mourning 
been  so  impressively  heard,  nor  the  grief  of  our  citizens  so 
universally  and  emphatically  expressed.  Well  may  our  city 
and  our  country  mourn  I- — Hamilton,  in  the  prime  of  life, 
and  the  vigour  of  talents  and  of  usefulness,  has  been  hur. 
ried  to  an  untimely  grave  !  He  whose  unequalled  skill,  and 
undaunted  courage  at  the  siege  of  York-Town,  gave  victo- 
ry to  our  arms,  and  peace  to  our  country — -whose  transcen- 
dent talents,  and  unwearied  efforts,  contributed  essentially 
to  the  erection  of  our  national  fabric — who  organized  our 
financial  system,  and  established  our  public  credit — who  was 
the  favourite  counsellor  and  friend  of  Washington — who  in- 
variably sacrificed  private  gain,  and  personal  honour  at  the 
shrine  of  public  good — whose  comprehensive,  powerful  and 
intuitive  mind  formed  the  boast  and  glory  of  America — rthe 
illustrious,  the  eloquent  Hamilton,  has  fallen  by  the  hand  of 
a  desperate  and  relendess  foe ! 

WHO  would  believe,  had  not  the  fact  evinced  it,  that  the 
son  of  the  venerable  President  Burr,  that  model  of  Christian 
patience,  charity,  and  meekness,  whose  instruction,  and 
whose  example  equally  tended  to  impress  the  utmost  kindness 
and  good-will  to  all  men — that  the  son  of  such  a  man,  the 
second  officer  in  the  United  States,  should,  in  direct  viola- 
tion of  the  laws  of  heaven  and  of  his  own  state — in  violation 
of  the  most  sacred  principles  of  religion  and  morality,  and 
after  every  means  of  reconciliation  on  the  part  of  the  unfor- 
tunate deceased,  that  was  consistent  with  honour  (as  we  are 
informed)  had  been  exhausted — should  take  a  cool  and  dead- 
ly aim  against  the  first  citizen  of  our  country — the  father  of 
a  numerous  family — the  husband  of  a  most  affectionate 
wife-^-an  ornament  to  his  country  and  to  human  nature  ? 
Could  nothing  but  his  blood  atone  for  a  few  hasty  expres- 
sions, indiscreet  as  they  regarded  his  personal  safety,  but 


(  68  ) 

honestly  intended  for  the  public  good,  and  authorized  by- 
eve^  just  principle  of  an  elective  government  ?  Could  no- 
thing allay  the  cool,  persevering  resentment  of  his  antagonist, 
but  the  heart's  blood  of  such  a  man  ? 

WELL  !  he  is  gone  !  Gone,  with  the  tenderest  esteem,  the 
highest  respect,  the  most  affectionate  tears,  that  ever  fell  on 
the  tomb  of  a  public  character !  He  has  gone,  we  trust,  to 
receive  the  rich  reward  of  his  "  labours  of  love" — of  the  ma- 
ny and  great  exertions  for  his  country's  welfare.  Trusting 
in  the  merits  of  his  Saviour — penitent  for  his  past  sins — for- 
giving even  the  foe  from  whom  he  received  his  mortal 
wound — he  is  gone  amidst  the  gush  of  sorrow  from  the  eyes 
of  weeping  thousands,  to  receive  that  recompense  of  re- 
ward, which  is  the  meed  of  the  truly  upright  and  benevo- 
lent. 

ON  this  deeply  affecting  subject  much  more  could  be  said  : 
but  we  pause 

44  To  those  -who  know  him  not,  no  ruorfa  can  paint , 
4t  And  lliose  wha  knenv  himy  know  all  -words  are  faint?* 


THE  following  will  show  the  impression  made  by  the 
melancholy  event  in  Philadelphia, 

TRIBUTE    OF    RESPECT. 

THE.  Citizens  of  Philadelphia,  Southwark,  and  the  North- 
ern Liberties,  assembled  agreeably  to  public  notice,  for  the 
purpose  of  adopting  proper  measures  for  the  expression  of 
their  grief  at  the  untimely  fate  of  their  deceased  fellow-citi- 
zen, Major-General  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON,  their  admi- 


(  69) 

ration  of  his  virtues  and  his  talents — and  their  gratitude  for 
the  eminent  services,  .which  as  a  soldier  and  statesman,  he 
has  rendered  to  his  country — 

Resolve,  That  a  National  tribute  of  respect  to  the  memo- 
ry of  departed  Heroes  and  Statesmen,  not  only  excites  an 
emulation  of  their  glorious  example,  but  constitutes  trie  pu- 
rest reward  of  their  toils  and  their  virtues  ;  and  that  such  a 
tribute  is  justly  due  to  the  memory  of  ALEXANDER  HAMIL- 
TON. 

THAT  in  imitation  of  the  pious  example  of  the  deceased, 
in  the  closing  scenes  of  his  life,  exhibiting  an  illustrious 
proof  of  the  benign  influence  of  the  religion  of  our  forefa- 
thers, the  citizens,  in  their  respective  places  of  worship,  on 
Sunday  next,  will  render  their  prayers  of  thanksgiving  to 
GOD,  for  his  goodness  in  having  blessed  our  nation  with 
men  of  talents  to  discern,  and  of  virtue  to  pursue,  her  safe- 
ty, her  honour,  and  her  welfare  ;  and  especially  for  having, 
thus  long,  continued  to  us  the  eminently  useful  talents  of  the 
deceased. 

THAT  the  Clergymen  of  the  several  denominations  be  re- 
quested to  expatiate  on  the  same  day  upon  the  irreligious 
and  pernicious  tendency  of  a  custom,  which  has  deprived 
our  country  of  one  of  her  best  and  most  invaluable  citizens, 
and  has  proved  so  fatally  destructive  to  the  happiness  of  his 
family. 

THAT  arrangements  be  made  for  having  the  bells  through- 
out the  city  muffled  and  tolled  during  the  day,  and  that  the 
Merchants  will  direct  the  Masters  of  their  ships  in  the  har- 
bour to  display  their  flags  half  mast  high. 


(ro) 

THAT,  as  a  further  demonstration  of  our  grief  for  his  loss 
and  our  respect  and  affection  for  his  memory,  such  of  the 
citizens  as  may,  consistently  with  their  peculiar  religious 
principles,  will  wear  black  crape  round  their  left  arm  for 
thirty  days. 

THAT  a  copy  of  the  proceedings  of  this  meeting  be  trans- 
mitted by  the  Chairman  to  the  Mayor  of  the  city  of  New- 
York...and  that  the  sincere  and  heart-felt  condolence  of 
the  citizens  of  Philadelphia,  Southwark,  and  the  Northern 
Liberties,  be  tendered  to  him  and  to  his  fellow-citizens,  for 
the  loss  which  the  state  of  New- York  and  the  United  States 
of  America,  have  sustained  in  the  death  of  General  HA- 
MILTON. 

THAT  a  committee  be  appointed  to  carry  the  foregoing  re- 
solutions into  effect,  and  to  make  such  further  arrangements 
relative  thereto,  as  may  be  suitable  to  the  occasion  ;  and  that 
the  following  gentlemen  compose  the  committee  : 

JOHN  C.  Stocker,  Thomas  Fitzsimons,  Geo.  Latimer, 
Elias  Boudinot,  Jacob  Sperry,  John  K.  Kelmuth,  Godfrey 
Haga,  Joseph  Marsh,  Thomas  Haskins,  William  Lewis, 
William  Rawle,  Manuel  Eyre,  and  Joseph  Grice. 

AND,  that  the  proceedings  of  this  meeting  be  subscribed 
by  the  Chairman  and  Secretary,  and  published  in  all  the  pa- 
pers of  the  city. 

THOMAS  WILLING,  Chairman. 

Attest,         WM.  MEREDITH,  Scc>ry. 

» 

AT  a  meeting  of  the  Members  of  the  Bar  of  the  city  of 
Philadelphia,  held  at  the  Court-house,  on  Monday,  the  16th 


(n) 

of  July  instant,  the  following  resolutions  were  unanimously 
adopted  :— 

Resolved,  That,  uniting  in  the  general  grief  for  the  death 
of  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON,  we  feel  it  our  duty  to  testify  our 
deep  regret  for  his  loss,  as  a  member  of  the  profession  to 
which  he  had  returned,  after  a  series  of  public  labours,  in 
which  the  eminence  he  attained  was  only  surpassed  by  the 
variety  of  his  excellence  ;  in  which  exalted  genius,  incessant 
industry,  and  disinterested  patriotism,  enlightened  and  de- 
fended, enriched  and  dignified  a  nation  which  must  ever  feel 
for  him  the  strongest  obligations  of  gratitude,  affection,  and 
regret. 

IN  the  general  testimony  of  sorrow,  we  claim  the  right  of 
adding  our  peculiar  tribute,  and  of  deploring  the  loss  which 
the  science  of  Jurisprudence,  selected  by  him  for  the  con- 
cluding employment  of  his  valuable  life,  has  sustained  by 
his  untimely  and  unexpected  end. 

Resolved,  That  the  Members  of  the  Bar  in  the  city 
of  Philadelphia,  in  testimony  of  their  sorrow  for  the  death 
of  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON,  Counsellor  at  Law,  will  re- 
spectively wear  black  crape  on  their  hats,  for  the  space  of 
thirty  days. 

JARED  INGERSOLL,  Chairman. 

JOS.  HOPKINSON,  Sec'ry. 


AT  a  meeting  of  the  Students  at  Law,  in  the  city  of  Phi- 
ladelphia, convened  at  the  county  Court-house  the  16th  inst. 
for  the  purpose  of  adopting  proper  measures  to  testify  their 
respect  for  the  memory  of  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON,  Esquire, 
Counsellor  at  Law : 


It  rvos  unanimously  Resolved — That  having  long  contem- 
plated the  virtues  and  talents  of  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON,  as 
a  bright  and  eminent  object  of  imitation,  they  sincerely  de- 
plore the  loss  which  they  and  their  country  have  sustained, 
in  being  deprived  of  his  example. 

THAT  as.  a  memorial  of  the  lively  sensibility  which  has 
been  excited  by  his  death,  they  will  wear  black  crape  on 
their  hats  for  thirty  days. 

JOHN  E.  HALL,  Chairman. 
GEO.  CLYMER,  junr.  Secretary. 

IN  consequence  of  the  intelligence  of  General  HAMIL- 
TON'S death,  the  bells  of  Christ  Church  were  muffled  on 
Saturday  and  yesterday:  and  the  colours  of  the  shipping 
in  the  harbour  were  displayed,,  on  Saturday,  at  half  mast. 


THE  Gazettes  of  Philadelphia  were  distinguished  on  this 
occasion  by  the  heartfelt  effusions  of  sorrow,  which  they  con- 
tained. The  following  extracts  from  the  Political  Register, 
are  eminently  entitled  to  notice  for  their  elegance,  their  pa- 
thos, and  their  discrimination*  The  two  first  are  from  the 
pen  of  the  editor,  Major  Jackson,  who  was  a  fellow  soldier 
with  Hamilton,  in  our  revolutionary  war-*  The  last,  it  will 
be  seen,  is  from  a  correspondent. 

FROM    THE    POLITICAL    REGISTER. 

THE  mail  from  New- York  of  this  morning,  confirms  the 
melancholy,  the  heart-rending  intelligence  of  the  DEATH  of 
Gen..  HAMILTON.  The  mourning  countenance  of  our  citi- 
zens...the  anguish  of  hrs  friends.. .the  tears  of  his  country- 
men, proclaim  their  sense  of  his  worth,  and  offer  a  just 


tribute  of  gratitude  to  his  memory.  To  the  honour  of  our 
character,  let  it  be  recorded,  that  those  who  entertained  un- 
ceasing jealousy  of  his  superior  powers,  while  living...with 
honourable  feeling  lament  him  dead.  After  WASHINGTON, 
(who  alone  surpassed  him). ..after  the  -first  of  Men  and 
greatest  of  heroes,  who  has  rivalled  HAMILTON  in  useful- 
ness to  our  country  ?...in  attachment  to  its  interests  ?...in  un- 
ceasing labour,  in  the  exertion  of  the  most  splendid  talents 
for  its  welfare  ?  The  generous  and  gallant  SOLDIER,  the  wise 
and  virtuous  STATESMAN,  the  eloquent  and  accomplished 
ORATOR,  the  ardent  and  magnanimous  PATRIOT,  has  fal- 
len the  victim  of  unyielding  honour,  and  inflexible  inte- 
grity. 

His  memory  is  embalmed  in  the  esteem  and  affection  of 
'his  contemporaries,  and  will  be  consecrated  by  the  gratitude 
of  his  country  to  future  ages. 

THUS  hath  fallen,  prematurely  fallen,  the  HERO,  to  whose 
military  ardour  and  accomplishments  America  confessed  the 
highest  obligation ;  the  CIVILIAN,  from  whose  luminous 
and  correct  mind  proceeded  that  invaluable  commentary  on 
the  Constitution  of  the  United  States,  which  essentially  con- 
tributed to  insure  its  adoption ;  the  STATESMAN,  to  whose 
talents  we  are  indebted  for  the  organization  of  our  finances, 
and  the  establishment  of  our  public  credit :  the  JURIST  and 
the  SCHOLAR,  whose  combination  of  intellectual  powers 
formed  the  boast  and  ornament  of  our  country ;  the  PATRI- 
OT, who  gave,  with  glowing  zeal,  to  that  country,  the  in- 
creasing efforts  of  his  superior  mind ;  and  the  MAN,  who, 
endeared  to  his  friends  by  every  tender  and  enobled  quality 
of  the  heart,  received  in  return  the  truest  affection,  and  the 
most  respectful  esteem. 


SAME    PAPER. 

WHEN  we  say  that  HAMILTON  is  DEAD  !  we  can  add  no- 
thing to  the  cause  of  grief... When  we  remember  how  he  liv- 
ed, we  can  add  nothing  to  the  lustre  of  his  fame.  Eulogium 
sinks  languid  on  the  swelling  heart;  it  gives  no  throb  un- 
felt  before,  it  cites  no  worth  unknown.  If  the  pathetic  voice  of 
Cicero  were  to  speak,  even  from  the  gloom  of  the  tomb,  it 
could  open  no  new  source  of  regret,  it  could  raise  no  new 
emotion  of  sorrow.  Deep  and  solemn  is  the  grief  of  a  peo- 
ple...the  tide  swells  from  ten  thousand  fountains :  the  torrent 
rolls  in  a  resistless  course.  If  the  great  Spirit  of  our  depart- 
ed glory  will  linger  but  a  litde,  and  delay  its  ardent  flight  to 
the  prepared  mansions  of  eternal  bliss,  it  will  witness  that 
we  are  not  ungrateful,  it  will  behold  the  pure  and  convul- 
sive tributes  of  unaffected  wo.  His  virtues  are  reflected 
from  coundess  tears  ;  and  men  say  HE  is  LOST  !  as  if  nothing 
\vas  left.  The  great  Hope  of  the  nation  is  sunk. ..Party  rage 
is  overwhelmed  in  the  flood  of  lamentation,  and  all  men 
unite  in  unfeigned  eulogiums  on  the  splendid  talents,  the 
pure  patriotism,  the  spotless  integrity,  the  noble,  disinter- 
ested nature  of  the  lost  HAMILTON  ! 

SAME  PAPER. 

THE  deplorable  termination  of  Gen.  HAMILTON'S  career 
of  usefulness  to  his  country,  and  glory  to  himself,  has  excit- 
ed, among  all  denominations  of  our  fellow-citizens,  those 
strong  emotions  of  sympathy  and  grief,  which  his  long  and 
faithful  public  services,  his  great  and  splendid  talents,  his 
firm  and  inflexible  integrity,  his  active  and  undaunted  brave- 
ry, his  noble,  disinterested,  and  magnanimous  patriotism, 
demanded  from  a  just  and  grateful  people. 

THE  soldier  of  the  Revolution  laments,  in  deep  affliction, 
the  loss  of  the  HERO,  who  was  the  generous  and  affection- 


(75) 

ate  friend  of  his  youth — the  unwearied  and  gallant  associate 
of  his  toils  and  dangers — and  under  whose  auspices  the  ho- 
nour and  glory  of  our  country  never  would  have  faded,  nor 
its  independence  and  happiness  have  ever  been  subverted. 

THE  Agriculturist,  the  Merchant,  and  the  Artificer,  re- 
gret, with  unaffected  concern,  the  death  of  the  STATESMAN, 
by  whose  indefatigable  labour,  and  exalted  genius,  our  fi- 
nances were  restored  to  order  and  arrangement ;  public  cre- 
dit was  established  ;  commerce  invigorated  ;  manufactures 
revived  ;  and  the  means  of  our  present  unexampled  prosperi- 
ty, and  growing  greatness,  brought  into  full  and  active  ope- 
ration. 

THE  lawyer  deplores  the  loss  of  a  brother  CIVILIAN,  the 
purity  of  whose  professional  life,  in  all  the  rage  for  party  de- 
famation, has  never  been  questioned — whose  eloquence  and 
learning  had  neither  rival  nor  detractor — whose  talents  never 
were  exerted  in  the  cause  of  injustice — never  yielded  to  the 
insolence  of  power,  nor  justified  the  practice  of  oppression. 

THE  friend  of  science  mourns  over  our  privation  of  the 
SCHOLAR,  whose  mind  was  the  seat  of  the  highest  intellec- 
tual endowments — whose  genius  had  penetrated  the  inmost 
recesses  of  literature,  and  whose  imagination  was  as  brilliant 
and  vigorous,  as  his  judgment  was  intuitively  strong. 

THE  Moralist  and  the  Christian,  while  indignant  at  the 
powerful,  but  wicked  and  barbarous  laws,  which  custom 
has  prescribed  and  sanctioned,  weep  over  the  lamentable 
sacrifice,  which  a  high  and  delicate  sense  of  honour,  a  pure 
and  ennobled  regard  to  fame  and  reputation,  have  yielded 
to  jealousy  and  resentment. 


(  re) 

THE  liberal  and  patriotic  Ministerialist,  with  what  ardour 
and  violence  he  may  have  opposed  the  Founder  of  Federal 
politics,  while  living,  is  yet  grieved,  sincerely  grieved,  that 
our  nation  should  be  deprived  of  powers  which  conferred 
honour  upon  man. 

AND  the  Federalist,  who  has  long  listened  with  wonder 
and  delight,  to  the  just  precepts  of  political  science  which 
have  issued  from  his  lips — who  has  surrendered  to  his  wis« 
dom  and  integrity,  the  post  of  his  Protector,  and  most  in- 
fluential of  his  advisers,  is  overpowered  with  anguish  for  his 
friend — and  sinks  into  despondence  for  his  country. 

AMICUS. 


THE  editors  of  the  United  States  Gazette,  long  known  as 
the  leading  federal  paper  of  the  Middle  States,  expressed 
themselves  in  the  following  beautiful  and  energetic  lan- 
guage. 

WHEN  a  great  man  falls,  his  nation  mourns.  When  a 
great  man  and  a  political  father  falls,  in  the  midst  of  his 
days  ;  "  in  his  full  strength  ;"  in  the  very  vigour  of  his  age  ; 
at  the  noontide  of  his  usefulness  ;  his  bereaved  nation  suf- 
fers deep  affliction.  When  such  a  man  falls,  aside  from  the 
ordinary  course  of  nature  ;  cut  off  by  the  hand  of  violence  ; 
and  sent  suddenly,  and  prematurely,  to  be  numbered  with 
the  silent  dead ;  his  fall  js  yet  more  deeply  and  peculiarly 
bewailed — Such  a  man  has  fallen  in  our  nation — Such  a 
man,  such  a  father,  was  Alexander  Hamilton ;  and  in  such 
a  manner  has  he  fallen ;  in  the  miplst  of  his  days ;  "  in  his 
full  strength  ;"  in  the  very  vigour  of  his  age  ;  at  the  noon- 


(  W) 

tide  of  his  usefulness ;  cut  off,  alas !  by  the  hand  of  vio- 
lence; His  fall  is  very  deeply  and  peculiarly  bewailed  by 
his  mourning  country.  Of  the  independence  of  the  nation^ 
he  was  a  bold  asserter,  a-  brave  champion ;  of  her  invaluable 
constitution,  a  most  able  expositor  and  defender;  of  her 
infantine  prosperity,  political  and  commercial,  a  most  assi- 
duous and  successful  promoter ;  of  her  maturity,  the  pride, 
the  boast,  the  brilliant  ornament ;  of  her  future  hopes,  the 
darling  object ; — of  hopes,  alas  !  how  fatally  disappointed  ! 
how  suddenly,  how  prematurely  blasted ! 


A  CORRESPONDENT  of  Mr.   Poulson,  in  the   American- 
Daily  Advertiser,  thus  eloquently  vents  his  grief : 

Our  Hamilton,  alas  !  is  no  more.  Hamilton !  the  pride 
and  ornament  of  his  country,  now  sleeps  in  the  tomb.  We 
have  lost  him  in  the  meridian  of  his  days.  Those  respTerf- 
dent  abilities  which  gave  lustre  to  our  nation,  have  sunk, 
prematurely  sunk,  into  the  grave.  The  luminous  and  ex- 
panded  intellect,  so  often  the  theme  of  our  admiration,  and 
our  praise,  is  no  longer  to  instruct  and  delight  Us.  That 
eloquence  to  which  Courts  and  Senates  have  listened  with 
rapture,  is  for  ever  done.  His  bereaved  country,  in  humble 
submission  to  the  will  of  Heaven,  will  bear,  yet  mourn 
their  loss.  They  will  cherish  the  recollection  of  the  exalted 
energies  of  his  mind,  of  the  endearing  attributes  of  his 
heart.  They  will  consecrate  his  memory  by  their  sorrows 
and  their  tears.  We  are  often  called  upon  to  deplore  the 
loss  of  men,  whose  amiable  qualities  have  endeared  them  to 
the  circle  of  their  private  friends.  When  the  Hero  falls,  the 
tears  of  his  country  fall  with  him.  The  statesman,  the  se- 
nator,  and  the  patriot,  spread  by  their  death  a  general  afflic- 


(78) 

tion.  But  it  is  our  lot  to  bear  the  aggravated  grief  that 
arises  at  the  loss  of  all  these  characters.  HAMILTON,  beloved 
by  his  friends,  endeared  to  his  ^family;  the  statesman,  the 
senator,  the  patriot,  the  hero,  is  gone.  At  the  fall  of  such 
a  man,  grief  is  silent,  and  eloquence  muses  eulogiums  which 
cannot  be  expressed. 

THE  citizens  of  New- York,  in  a  manner  honourable  to 
the  character  of  our  country,  have  upon  this  occasion  for- 
gotten their  political  distinctions,  and  all  joined  in  demon- 
strations of  sorrow  at  departed  greatness.  The  presses  in 
that  city  under  the  conduct  and  support  of  the  political  ad- 
versaries of  General  Hamilton,  announce  his  death  with  ap- 
propriate lamentation.  Citizens  of  Philadelphia,  citizens  of 
America !  you  will  all  share  in  the  testimonies  of  grief  at  de- 
parted genius.  The  solemn  and  affecting  death  of  the  zeal- 
ous defender  of  your  revolution,  of  the  companion  in  arms 
of  your  WASHINGTON,  of  the  eloquent  expounder  of  your 
constitution,  claims  a  general  mourning. 


THE  Port  Folio  thus  introduces  the  subject : 

"  IMPERIAL  HONOUR'S  awful  hand 
Shall  point  his  lonely  bed. 

THIS  morning  intelligence  of  the  death  of  Major  General 
ALEXANDER  HAMILTON  has  saddened  this  city,  and  wil[ 
long  afflict  the  nation.  He  was  killed  by  the  V ice-President 
of  the  United  States  in  a  duel,  fought  on  the  Jersey  shore, 
on  the  morning  of  the  llth  of  July.  Whether  General  Ha- 
milton was,  or  was  not,  a  victim  to  private  malignity,  fo- 
mented by  party  rancour,  his  untimely  death  will  be  peiv 


(79) 

manently  regretted  by  every  American  who  remembers  the 
signal  services,  both  in  the  cabinet  and  in  the  field,  which 
this  accomplished  Scholar,  this  valiant  Soldier,  this  SAGA- 
CIOUS STATESMAN,  has  rendered  to  a  country,  which,  with- 
out his  courage  and  counsels,  would  have  long  since  moul- 
dered into  insignificance,  or  maddened  into  anarchy." 

AT  the  conclusion  of  the  article  Mr.  Dennie  breaks  forth 
in  the  following  elegant  strain  of  lamentation  : 

"  THUS  has  perished,  in  the  prime  of  life,  and  in  the  midst 
of  his  usefulness,  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON,  the  man  of  'exalt- 
edsentiments ,  and  extensive  viexvs,  whose  theories  guided  the 
statesman,  whose  eloquence  influenced  senates,  whose  delicacy 
might  have  polished  courts,  and  whose  versatile  talents  bles- 
sed mankind.  He  has  fallen,  not  in  the  course  of  nature, 
not  jeopardizing  his  life  in  the  high  places  of  the  field,  but 
by  a  private  and  petty  hand... .and  his  perplexed  and  sorrow- 
ing country  makes  the  pathetic  interrogatory  of  the  royal 
Psalmist : 

KNOW  YE  NOT  THAT  THERE  IS  A  GREAT 
MAN  FALLEN  THIS  DAY  IN  ISRAEL? 

UPON  opening  the  General's  will,  there  was  found  enclos- 
ed in  it  a  letter  to  his  wife,  written  on  the  4th  inst.  in  which 
he  tells  her,  that  he  had  endeavoured,  by  all  possible  means, 
to  avoid  the  duel,  but  that  he  found  it  impossible,  unless 
by  acting  in  a  manner  which, would  justly  forfeit  her  esteem. 
That  he  should  certainly  fall,  and  she  would  receive  that 
letter  after  his  death.  He  begs  her  forgiveness  for  being 
the  cause  of  so  much  pain  to  her,  and  earnestly  entreated 
her  to  bear  herself  up  under  that  load  of  grief  with  which 
she  would  be  overwhelmed,  placing  a  firm  reliance  on  a 
kind  Providence  who  would  never  desert  her. 

M 


(80) 

THE  subsequent  Port  Folio  was  entirely  devoted  to  the 
subject.  This  paper  (says  Mr.  Dennie)  is  consecrated  to 
the  Memorial  of  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON,  of  whose  afflict- 
ed Country,  bereaved  of  her  brightest,  greatest,  and  most 
stedfast  hope,  it  may  be  appropriately  said,  in  the  words  of 
an  eloquent  ancient. 

Quac  cum  magna  modis  multis  miranda  videtur, 
Gentibus  humanis  regio,  visenda  fertur, 
Rebus  opima  bonis,  multa  munita  virum  vi, 
NIL  tament  HOC  babuisse  viro  praeclarius  in  se 
Nee  sanctum  magis  et  carumque  videtur. 

[THEN  follows  the  correspondence,  accompanied  by  the 
letter  of  Bishop  Moore ;  to  which  are  subjoined  the  "  fune- 
ral obsequies,"  the  "  funeral  oration,"  and  the  best  written 
eulogiums  that  have  appeared  in  the  various  papers.  The 
following  paragraphs,  from  Mr.  Dennie's  own  polished 
hand,  close  "  the  memorial."] 

<c  THE  elegant  encomium,  with  the  signature  of  "  AMICUS," 
which  we  reprint  from  the  Register,  is  an  eloquent  and  af- 
fectionate tribute  to  the  memory  of  the  illustrious  dead. 
We  add,  with  peculiar  pleasure,  that  with  one  disgraceful 
and  infamous  exception,  the  editors  of  the  daily  papers  of 
Philadelphia  have  manifested  their  respect  for  the  memory 
of  Hamilton,  in  panegyric  the  most  pathetic,  liberal,  inge- 
nious, and  sincere. 

WITH  respect  to  the  city  at  large,  its  grief  has  been,  by 
no  means,  limited  in  extent,  or  feeble  in  expression.  Thrust- 
ing aside,  as  unworthy  consideration,  the  rancorous  jaco- 
bin, the  scoffing  deist,  the  snivelling  fanatic,  and  the  imported 
scoundrel,  we  have  heard  the  voice  of  deep  lament  from 
every  side.  All,  who  have  a  tear  for  pity,  all  good  and  true 
men,  all  genuine  Patriots,  the  votaries  of  Christianity,  the 


(81) 

votaries  of  Genius,  every  magnanimous,  every  virtuous  in- 
dividual, have  bewailed  the  private  loss,  and  the  public  cala- 
mity. On  the  Saturday,  when  this  national  misfortune  was 
first  reported  in  the  city,  the  Editor,  as  he  took  his  melan- 
choly rounds,  was  struck  with  the  contemplation  of  the  ge- 
neral anxiety  ;  and  when  he  beheld  those  who  wept  for  the 
fall  of  Hamilton,  and  those  "  who  were  indignant  at  its 
cause"  he  could  not  avoid  remembering  a  picturesque  de- 
scription by  a  great  historical  Painter.  "  Neque  populi  aut 
plebis  ulla  vox  ;  sed  attoniti  vultus,  et  conversse  ad  omnia 
aures.  Non  tumultus,  non  quies  ;  sed  quale  magni  metus 
et  MA-GNJE  iR^  silcntium  est." 


WE  have  remarked,  with  signal  satisfaction,  that  with 
very  few  exceptions,  the  respectable  Society  of  Friends 
have  testified  a  sincere  regret  for  the  hapless  lot  of  HAMIL- 
TON. Though  their  peculiar  tenets  preclude  a  Sad  Ostent^  in 
memory  of  the  dead  ;  though  they  wear  no  inky  cloaks  nor 
customary  suits  of  solemn  black,  yet  theirs  is  the  sagacity  to 
discern  the  value  of  a  great  Statesman,  and  theirs  is  the  si- 
lent sorrow  which  muses  at  his  loss, 

3£*^  THE  friends  of  the  Editor  are  very  respectfully  noti- 
fied, that  the  publication  of  the  Port  Folio  has  been  postpon- 
ed that  he  might  present  a  complete  and  accurate  view  of  a 
most  sinister  event,  which  has  overwhelmed  America  with 
affliction.  Notwithstanding  his  utmost  pains,  and  his  fer- 
vent zeal  to  exhibit  all  that  is  plausive  and  respectful  of  that 
greatness  and  goodness,  so  conspicuous  in  the  character  of 
General  Hamilton,  it  is  apprehended  some  omission  or 
some  error  may  appear  from  the  very  eagerness  of  the 
Editor  to  do  ample  justice  to  the  subject.  Hereafter,  the 
column  of  HAMILTON'S  FAME  may  be  indicated  by  no  ran- 
dom or  feeble  hand.  Meanwhile,  I  thus  remember  the  pa. 


(82) 

thetic  prophecy  of  the  classic  Historian,  which  TACITUS 
has  not  applied  with  mpre  truth  to  Julius  Agricola,  than  it 
may  be  applied  to  Alexander  Hamilton. 

Quidquid  ex  illo  amavimus,  quidquid  mirati  sumus,  MAN- 
ET, MANSURUMQJJE  est  in  animis  hominum,  fama  rerum. 
Nam  multos  veterum  velut  inglorios  et  ignobiles  oblivio  ob- 
ruet.  Ilk,  Posteritati  narratus  et  traditus,  SUPERSTES  ERIT, 


EXTRACTS  will  now  be  indiscriminately  presented  from 
various  other  papers  in  the  order  they  appeared.  They  will 
all  serve  to  show,  that  the  tears  which  flowed  on  the  death  of 
Hamilton  were  not  confined  to  a  few  men,  nor  to  a  particu- 
lar party ;  but  that  it  was  the  nation  who  wept  for  his  loss. 

THE  following  eminently  beautiful  lines,  marked  equally 
by  delicacy  and  pathos,  first  appeared  in  the  American  Ci- 
tizen. We  presume  from  the  signature,  they  are  from  the 
pen  of  Mrs.  R— -,  a  Lady  whose  effusions  have  some- 
times heretofore  adorned  the  columns  of  the  Morning  Chro- 
nicle. 

THE  GRAVE  OF  HAMILTON, 

SOFT  beam  thy  rays,  fair  daughter  of  the  skies, 
With  rich  profusion  gilding  o'er  this  scene 
Of  deep  repose  and  death  :  each  vagrant  breeze 
Lies  hush'd  within  its  cell,  in  seeming  fear 
The  solemn  calm  of  nature  should  be  broken — 
Save  when  a  solitary  zephyr's  sound, 
Sighing,  in  mournful  cadence,  thro'  the  trees, 
Seems  like  a  parted  spirit's  whisp'ring  voice 
Which  tells  of  wo  to  come — 
A  chilly  horror  rushes  thro'  my  frame, 


(83) 

As  o'er  this  sad  sepulchral  scene  I  tread, 

With  slow  and  winding  step — lest  on  some  grave 

Haste  might  impel  my  feet — Nor  you,  ye  wise, 

Smile  at  the  superstition  fond,  which  deems 

The  act  unholy,  and  a  sacrilege 

To  nature's  laws  :  Oh !  rather  join  and  pay 

The  rev'rence  due  to  nature's  sad  remains. 

This  is  the  spot  my  wandering  feet  have  sought, 

The  last  receptacle  of  him,  who  once 

Was  great  and  good — alas  !  how  far  beyond 

The  reach  of  common  natures  :  his  it  was 

To  blend  each  nobler  quality  which  forms 

The  soldier,  sta  esman,  and  endearing  friend, 

In  happy  union — his  the  feeling  heart, 

Which    o  the  Bender  charities  of  life 

Beat  in  kind  unison — th'  electric  power 

Of  Genius  was  his  own,  in  such  degree 

That  all  stood  mute  before  him.     Awful  lesson 

To  man's  fond  vanity — that  Hamilton, 

Whose  wisdom,  goodness,  valour,  were  almost 

Beyond  all  parallel,  hasbow'd  beneath 

Death's  iron  sceptre  ;  and  but  late  entomb'd 

That  eye,  whose  lightning  spoke  the  soul  within; 

Those  lips,  whosesounds  in  pleasing  fetters  held 

Each  ear  attentive,  mouldering  in  the  dust.... 

Bright  dart  the  moon-beams  o'er  his  lowly  grave, 

And,  by  their  silv'ry  light,  methinks  I  read 

A  name  to  him  allied — his  eldest  Hope  ! 

Heart-piercing  sight !  here,  side  by  side  arrang'd, 

Father  and  Son  lie  wrapt  in  long  repose  ! 

Alike  untimely  fallen,  victims  alike 

To  honour — Tyrant  of  the  feeling  heart. 

Oh,  hapless  mother!  widow'd  wife  !  what  words 

Can  paint  thine  anguish  ?  Scarce  the  streaming  tears 

Which  deep  maternal  sorrow  taught  to  flow, 

Were  dry'd  from  thy  pale  cheek,  when  this  rude  blow 

Struck  at  the  beam  of  peace  that  still  remain'd, 

And  tore  it  from  thy  breast.     May  each  blest  power, 

Kind  guardians  of  the  good,  with  constant  care 

Support  thy  grief-worn  heart ;  and  resignation 

Upon  thy  bosom  shed  her  healing  dew. 


(84) 

For  him,  who  lies  this  sacred  dust  beneath, 
Vain  is  our  deep  regret- — a  nation's  tears, 
A  nation's  prayers,  could  not  avail  to  add 
One  moment  to  his  life  :  Yet  to  ourselves, 
A  soothing,  melancholy  pleasure  springs, 
From  ev'ry  tribute  render'd  to  his  worth- 
How  justly  all  must  know.     Fond  mem'ry  still 
Delights  to  trace  the  youthful  warrior's  steps 
From  field  to  field  ;  but  chiefly  loves  to  dwell 
On  southern  plains,  where  York  extends  her  bounds  j 
Where,  to  the  desp'rate  charge  his  troops  he  led, 
Then  on  the  vanquish 'd  foe  benignly  smil'd. 
Sure  angels,  from  their  bright  abodes,  look'd  down, 
And,  blest  a  vict'ry  worthy  of  a  hero. 
Unmark'd  with  blood's  contaminating  stain, 
Valour  and  Mercy,  for  his  youthful  brow, 
A  laurel  crown  entwin'd  with  fairest  flowers 
Perennial  intermix'd — still  shall  it  blocm, 
Tho'  "  cold  and  motionless"  the  hand  that  won  it, 
And  to  remotest  ages  give  its  sweets. 
But  why  recount  his  deeds  in  war  or  peace  ? 
O'er  all  Columbia's  wide  extended  shores 
His  name,  long  since,  was  heard.     Who  did  not  know 
In  worth  and  valour  few  were  found  his  equals — 
In  genius,  none  ?  Then,  be  his  well-earned  fame 
Confided  to  a  grateful  people's  care. 

CLARA. 


THE  ALBANY  CENTINEL. 

THOSE  Citizens  of  Albany  who  are  desirous  of  uniting 
to  express  their  sorrow  and  regret  at  the  loss  our  country 
has  suffered  in  the  death  of  one  of  its  firmest  citizens, 
ALEXANDER  HAMILTON,  are  requested  to  meet  at 
the  City- Hall,  at  six  o'clock  this  evening. 

CITY  OF  ALBANY. 

At  a  Common  Council  held  in  and  for  the  City  of  Albany,  at 


(85) 

the  City-Hall  of  the  said  city,  on  the  17th  day  of  July, 
1804: 

THE  Common  Council  having  heard  with  extreme  regret, 
the  untimely  and  afflicting  death  of  Major-General  ALEX- 
ANDER HAMILTON: 

Resolved  unanimously,  That  as  a  tribute  of  respect  to  the 
memory  of  that  exalted  and  most  worthy  man,  the  mem- 
bers of  the  Common  Council  and  the  Officers  of  this  Corpo- 
ration, will  wear  a  mourning  crape  on  the -left  arm  for  the 
space  of  six  weeks. 

Extract  from  the  minutes  of  the  Common  Council^ 
RICHARD  LUSH,  President. 

At  a  meeting  of  the  Albany  Military  Association,  at  Lewis's 
City  Tavern,  on  the  17th  July,  1804, 

Lieut.  Col.  VAN  SCHAICK,  President: 

The  Association  convened  for  the  purpose  of  paying  a 
'suitable  testimony  of  respect  to  the  memory  of  Major-Ge- 
neral  Alexander  Hamilton — in  whose  death  our  Country 
has  to  deplore  the  loss  of  a  Patriot,  a  Statesman,  and  a  Sol- 
dier ;  our  State,  a  dignified  and  illustrious  Citizen ;  and 
genius,  honour,  and  humanity,  one  of  their  brightest  orna- 
ments : 

Resolved  unanimously,  That  the  Members  of  this  Associ- 
ation will  wear  Crape  as  mourning  for  Major-General  Alex- 
ander Hamilton,  deceased,  for  the  space  of  six  weeks,  and 
also  on  the  first  company  parade  and  regimental  review. 

Extract  from  the  minutes, 

JOHN  WILL  ARC,  Secretary. 


THE  ALBANY  REGISTER.       (Democratic.} 

IN  our  last  we  mentioned  slightly,  that  Gen.  Hamilton 
hand  been  mortally  wounded  in  a  duel  with  Col.  Burr.  This 
melancholy  intelligence  has  since  been  confirmed,  to  the 
deep  regret  of  all  who  admire  genius,  respect  talents,  or  re- 
vere a  dignified  spirit  of  honour  and  integrity :  such  was  the 
spirit  which  animated  the  soul  of  Hamilton,  and  which  com- 
manded for  his  personal  character  the  veneration  of  all  classes 
of  citizens,  not  excepting  the  most  decided  of  his  political  ene- 
mies :  with  these  we  have  ever  ranked  ;  but  this  consideration 
shall  not  check  the  expression  of  our  feelings.  Who  is  there, 
that  will  not  mourn  the  loss  of  a  man  whose  unrivalled  elo- 
quence alone  rendered  him  the  ornament  of  his  profession, 
and  the  pride  of  his  country  ?  As  a  politician  we  did  not  re- 
gard him  ;  but  as  an  exalted  genius,  as  an  eloquent,  brave> 
generous,  frank,  and  honourable  man,  we  shall  ever  lament 
his  loss  and  revere  his  memory. 


THE    TRENTON    FEDERALIST. 

IN  this  day's  Gazette  we  present  our  readers  with  the 
interesting  correspondence  between  Gen.  Hamilton  and  Col. 
Burr,  preceding  the  fatal  rencounter  which  has  deprived  our 
country  of  one  of  its  brightest  ornaments.  While  we  lament 
the  supposed  necessity  which  called  the  venerable  deceased 
to  the  field  of  death,  we  should  unite  our  griefs  and  mingle 
our  tears  with  the  thousands  who  are  deeply  bewailing  the 
severe,  and  perhaps  we  might  add  irreparable,  loss.  An- 
other of  the  heroes  of  our  revolution,  another  of  the  foun- 
ders of  our  republic,  has  been  hurried  to  the  tomb  :  An- 
other of  the  pillars  of  our  commonwealth  has  been  tumbled 
into  ruins.  Since  the  departure  of  our  WASHINGTON,  the 
death  of  no  man  has  excited  such  general  grief,  or  covered 


(87) 

otir  country  with  so  general  a  mourning.  Even  those  who 
were,  while  he  lived,  his  political  adversaries,  seem  to  have 
buried  their  opposition  in  his  grave,  and  many  of  them,  la- 
menting the  loss  which  their  country  and  society  have  sus- 
tained, place  themselves  among  the  foremost  to  pay  every  tri- 
bute of  respect  to  his  splendid  merits  and  transcendent  abi- 
lities. Alas !  Hamilton,  the  sage,  the  soldier,  and  the  pa- 
triot, is  no  more  !  In  the  vigour  of  years,  and  in  the  midst 
of  eminent  usefulness,  he  has  gone  to  the  mansions  of  the 
dead.  Over  his  ashes  it  becomes  the  country  he  has  served 
with  such  devoted  zeal,  such  inflexible  integrity,  and  such 
prosperous  success,  to  raise  some  splendid  memorial  which 
shall  bid  future  generations  venerate  his  name,  and  emulate 
his  attachment  to  the  public  welfare.  But  ah !  when  we  re- 
flect that  no  monument  marks  the  spot  where  repose  the 
ashes  of  our  Washington,  we  fear  this  testimonial  of  grati- 
tude must  be  left  to  other  times — Like  him,  however,  he 
has  raised  for  himself  a  monument  which  shall  defy  the  blast 
of  ages  to  tarnish,  or  the  corroding  tooth  of  time  to  deface. 
Light  be  the  sod  which  lies  upon  his  breast !  Green  be  the 
grass  which  grows  upon  his  grave !  Eternal  be  the  laurels 
which  flourish  round  his  tomb ! 


THE  FEDERAL  ARK. 

IT  is  recommended  to  our  fellow-citizens  of  Delaware, 
that,  following  the  example  of  their  brethren  of  New- York 
and  Philadelphia,  they  wear  crape  on  the  left  arm  for  thir- 
ty days,  in  honour  of  the  late  General  HAMILTON. 

TIME  has  been  gathering  to  the  tomb  the  heroes  and 
sages  of  our  revolution,  and  HAMILTON,  with  his  blushing 
honours  thick  upon  him,  has  yielded  to  its  omnipotent 
sway. 


(88) 

WHEN  he  fell,  the  Genius  of  America,  recollecting  with 
gratitude,  and  swelling  with  grief,  shed  a  tear  to  his  me- 
mory, which  blotted  out  for  ever  the  imperfections  of  the 
man  from  the  brilliant  record  of  his  virtues. 

OUR  tutelary  genius  presided  at  his  birth... .Nature  was 
his  foster-mother....Virtue  blushed  not  to  call  him  her  son...- 
Wisdom  claimed  him  as  her  favourite  son....Patriotism  with 
rapture  pressed  him  to  her  bosom,  and  Valour  by  her  side, 
smiling  on  her  caresses,  resolved  to  complete  the  man.  En- 
rolled in  the  list  of  our  heroes,  thy  name,  HAMILTON,  shall 
never  be  forgotten.  As  a  great  man,  in  common  with  the 
world,  we  admired ;  in  the  circle  of  the  private  citizen  we 
loved  thee  j  and,  as  a  champion  in  the  cause  of  our  liberty, 
we  know  not  how  to  express  to  thee  our  gratitude. 

THE  electric  shock  has  appalled  and  paralized  the  coun- 
try. Party  spirit  forgoes  its  rancour ;  commerce,  with  it& 
busy  step,  forgets  its  course ;  the  great  and  small  alike  pay 
the  tribute  of  a  tear,  and  feel,  in  the  loss  of  HAMILTON,  a 
national  calamity.  Obeying,  then,  the  impulse  of  our  own 
feelings,  let  us  join  our  fellow-citizens  in  paying  the  last  sad 
tribute  to  his  memory. 

A  FRIEND  TO  DEPARTED  MERIT* 
MR.  CoLEMAN, 

IF  the  following  are  not  entirely  unworthy  of  their  exalt- 
ed subject,  give  them  a  place  in  the  Evening  Post.  A, 

VERSES 

ON    THE    DEATH    OF    GENERAL    HAMILTON.- 
SOLDIERS  of  Freedom  !  veil  your  eyes, 
For  low  in  dust  your  leader  lies  : 
No  more  his  gleaming  steel  he  draws, 
The  foremost  in  his  country's  cause. 


(  89) 

PATRIOTS  !  who  in  the  rolls  of  fame, 
Have  nobly  earn'd  a  glorious  name  ; 
With  melting  grief  your  loss  deplore — 
The  Second  Washington's  no  more  ! 

YE  Children  of  Columbia !  weep — 
Your  Statesman's  lock'd  in  death's  long  sleep  ; 
And,  till  the  course  of  time  has  roll'd, 
His  like  you  never  shall  behold. 

OFFSPRING  of  feeling  !  o'er  his  bier 
Heave  the  swoln  sigh,  and  .drop  the  tear—- 
For others'  wo,  bis  eyes  knew  well 
To  pour  their  streams — his  breast  to  swell. 

POOR  widow 'd  and  dejected  land ! 
Where  canst  thou  find,  like  his,  a  hand 
To  prop  the  fabric  of  thy  state, 
And  shield  thee,  like  o'er-ruling  fate  \ 

WELL  may'st  thou  grieve,  and  hang  thy  head- 
Thy  boast,  thy  guardian  /wu'r,  is  fled. 
Oh  !  why,  e'er  Heav'n  reclaim'd  his  mind, 
Was  not  his  "  mantle"  left  behind  ? 


THE  following  lines,  considered  as  the  production  of  a 
young  Miss,  only  twelve  years  of  age,  a  favourite  of  Ge- 
neral Hamilton's  in  his  life  time,  will  be  read  with  some  in- 

{erest  : 

ELEGY, 

ON  THE  DEATH  OF  GEN.  HAMILTON. 

HARK  !  while  the  deep-toned,  solemn,  funeral  belt, 
Proclaims  some  Chief  has  bade  the  world  farewell ! 
Mark !  how  they  pay  to  worth  the  tribute  dae, 
While  pitying  tears  the  mournful  cheek  bedew. 


(90) 

Well  may  they  weep,  and  for  his  loss  deplore  : 
His  country's  friend,  great  Hamilton's  no  more! 
Who  will  not  sigh  when  virtue  meets  the  doom, 
And  generous  worth  is  summon'd  to  the  tomb  ? 
But  in  the  feeling  mind  he'll  ne'er  expire, 
Still  crouds  shall  bless  him — blessing,   still  admire  -, 
Still  shall  he  live,  the  favourite  of  Fame, 
Who  thro'  the  world  shall  sound  his  honour'd  name  ; 
Record  the  virtues  in  his  soul  combin'd, 
True  to  his  friends,  nor  to  his  foes  unkind  ; 
Candid  as  truth,  like  innocence  sincere, 
Liberal  and  just,  when  other's  faults  appear; 
And  when  an  error,  or  a  vice  he  found, 
He  scorn'd  to  add  reproaches  to  the  wound. 
When  he  fought  nobly  in  his  country's  cause, 
'Twas  not  ambition  of  a  vain  applause, 
But  from  pure  motives,  like  a  patriot  brave, 
Her  rights,  her  laws,  her  liberties,  to  save — 
Shall,  then,  Columbia's  sons  their  grief  repress  r 
Shall  they  not  all  their  virtuous  hero  bless  ? 
Who  is  there  now  can  unconcern'd  appear, 
And  from  his  memory  withhold  the  tear  ? 
See,  at  the  tomb,  what  mournful  crouds  attend, 
Oh  !  patriot,  hero,  husband,  father,  friend  ! 
Now  free  from  cares,  from  mad  revenge  secure, 
Angels  shall  waft  thee  to  those  regions  pure, 
Where  worth  like  thine  shall  find  its  bright  reward, 
And  FACTION'S  murd'rous  arm  is  never  rear'd. 

L.  L. 


THE    NEAV-HAVEN    VISITOR. 

THE  painful  task  this  day  devolves  on  us  of  announcing  to 
our  readers  an  event  at  once  awful  and  distressing.  The 
illustrious  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON  is  NO  MORE  !  He  expired 
on  Thursday  last,  of  a  wound  received  the  preceding  day, 
in  a  duel  with  Col.  Burr.  This  fatal  duel,  which  has  de- 
prived the  world  of  so  great  and  distinguished  a  character, 


(91  ) 

originated,  we  understand,  not  from  any  particular  cause? 
but  from  a  long  course  of  political  animosity. 

SAME    PAPER. 

WE  presume  our  readers  will  pardon  us  for  engrossing 
this  day's  paper  with  accounts  of  the  tragic  scene  in  New- 
York.  We  have  endeavoured  to  present  the  most  important 
parts  of  the  whole  to  them,  that  they  may,  with  one  view, 
behold  the  deplorable  consequences  inseparable  from  a  cus- 
tom that  sets  at  defiance  the  laws  of  God  and  man,  and  is 
as  barbarous  as  vicious. 

IT  appears  that  the  cause  of  this  for  ever  to  be  lamented 
duel  was  of  no  great  moment.  The  scene  is  opened  with  a 
trifle  apparently  as  "  light  as  air ;"  but  soon  becomes  deeply 
interesting  and  affecting.  Its  progress  is  marked  with  death, 
a  funeral,  and  bitterest  weeping...In  it  we  behold  the  Vice- 
President,  the  second  Magistrate  of  five  millions  of  people, 
in  direct  contempt  of  all  law,  all  morality,  all  religion,  and 
apparently  without  any  just  provocation,  raise  his  hand 
against,  and  deliberately  destroy,  the  life  of  one  of  our  first 
and  most  distinguished  characters.. .a  character  who  would 
do  honour  to  any  country,  to  any  age,  and  who  could  not 
ilie  without  a  nation  wept...Let  us  imagine  this  venerable  man, 
this  great  victim  of  false  honour,  bleeding  before  us...See, 

"  Rolled  in  blood  he  gasping  lies  ; 

Too  daring"  man  ;  pride's  "  noblest  sacrifice  : 
His  snow-white  bosom  heaves  with  writhing  pain, 
The  purple  drops  his  snow  white  bosom  stain  ; 
His  cheeks  of  rose  are  wan  ;  a  deadly  hue 
Sits  on  his  face  that  chills  with  lucid  dew  ; 
Swiftly  his  colour  flies,  he  groans,  he  dies  !" 

Yes  he  dies,  but  his  well-earned  fame  will  never  die. 

It  will  ever  be  held  in  remembrance  by  his  grateful  country. 


(92) 


AMONG  the  papers,  federal  or  democratic,  which  have 
done  themselves  honour  by  their  manner  of  speaking  of  the 
late  melancholy  event,  we  particularly  distinguish  the  Na- 
tional ^Egis.  The  following  elegant  extract  is  from  the  pen 
of  some  gentleman  who  occasionly  assists  in  writing  for  this 
print. 

THE  NATIONAL  JEGIS. 

Death  of  General  Hamilton. — THE  last  Southern  mails 
have  brought  to  us  a  melancholy  confirmation  of  this  dis- 
tressing intelligence.  On  Wednesday  the  llth  inst.  at  8 
o'clock  in  the  morning,  he  received  a  mortal  wound  in  a 
duel  with  Col.  Burr,  and  expired  the  day  following,  at  2 
o'clock !  The  particulars,  so  far  as  they  have  transpired, 
will  be  found  under  the  New- York  head.  The  papers  of 
that  city  having  observed  a  cautious  and  gloomy  silence  on 
this  occasion,  it  is  not  in  our  power  to  satisfy  the  curiosity 
of  our  readers,  by  detailing  all  the  dreadful  circumstances 
of  this  disaster.  Enough,  however,  is  developed,  to  awa- 
ken the  sensibility,  and  to  excite  the  keenest  anguish  of  all 
those  who  are  disposed  to  forget  the  lighter  shades  of  politi- 
cal difference,  in  the  overwhelming  distresses  of  their  fel- 
low-creatures. 

WE  notice,  with  pride  and  satisfaction,  the  arrangements 
which  had  been  made  among  all  classes  of  people,  of  what- 
ever profession  or  party,  in  the  city  of  which  he  was  an  il- 
lustrious inhabitant,  to  render  a  feeling  and  unequivocal 
testimony  of  esteem  for  his  character,  of  regret  for  his  death, 
and  respect  for  his  memory.  Personal  resentment  has  been 
soothed,  private  animosity  has  been  forgotten,  and  the  spi- 


(93) 

rit  of  party  has  been  lulled  to  repose,  by  the  contemplation 
of  this  calamitous  event. 

THE  patriot,  to  whatever  political  sect  he  may  belong, 
remembers  in  him,  the  firm,  the  enlightened,  the  profound, 
the  inflexible  Statesman.  The  soldier  looks  back,  with 
grateful  devotion,  on  his  revolutionary  labours,  and  reveres 
the  intrepid  friend  and  companion  of  u  our  first  and  greatest 
revolutionary  hero"  The  man  of  letters  mourns,  with  mil- 
der sorrow,  the  learned  philosopher,  and  the  accomplished 
scholar ! — The  admirer  of  eloquence  dwells  with  rapture  on 
the  musical  accents  of  his  voice,  the  beautiful  sublimity  of 
his  language,  and  the  irresistible  force  of  his  persuasion  ! — 
He  who  delights  in  the  blandishments  of  life,  and  finds  com- 
fort and  consolation  in  the  enjoyments  of  social  intercourse, 
cannot  withhold  a  tear  when  he  calls  to  his  mind  the  amia- 
ble and  interesting  traits  in  his  character,  which  had  won 
the  affection  of  all,  who  were  comprised  within  the  extend- 
ed circle  of  his  acquaintance  ! — His  family But  here,  re- 
membrance is  too  painful ! — Within  the  narrow  compass  of 
two  years — a  wife  and  a  mother  has  followed  to  the  grave, 
a  son  and  a  husband  ;  both  victims  to  the  same  cruel  and  un- 
timely destiny ! — The  annals  of  our  Country  do  not  record 
an  instance  of  parallel  distress !  We  forbear  to  harrow  up 
her  soul  by  cold  and  unfeeling  reflections  on  the  manner  of 
hid  death  ! — If  an  inveterate  and  deep-rooted  custom  is  ever 
to  be  exploded,  it  will  be  done,  not  by  the  labours  of  the 
moralist,  or  the  threatenings  of  the  preacher  :  Scenes  of 
such  poignant  affliction  will  sink  deep  on  the  memory,  and 
will  serve  as  an  awful  warning  to  the  followers  of  that 
treacherous  Phantom,  which  leads  to  beguile,  and  seduces 
to  destroy. 


(94) 

TOR  THE  EVENING  POST. 

AN  IRREGULAR  ODE. 

HARK  !  how  the  passing  bell 
Heaves  to  the  gale  its  sullen  swell  : 
And  lo !  in  sorrow's  pomp  array 'd, 

To  the  dull  beat  of  death, 
The  slowly  moving  cavalcade ! 

The  half-suspended  breath 
Scarce  frees  the  struggling  sigh  ! 
And  hallow'd  tears  bedew  mute  Beauty's  eye-* 
Now,  o'er  the  mansions  of  the  dead, 
Behold  the  solemn  measur'd  tread ! 
Around  their  slumb'ring  Hero  drawn, 
The  silent  Soldiers  print  the  lawn — 
Now  the  long  blaze 
Arrests  the  gaze ; 
The  hollow  vaults  resound — 

The  blazing  sky, 
The  thund'ring  ground  f  . 

The  stedfast  eye, 
More  eloquent  than  Pity's  flow,, 
Proclaims  the  Soldier's  manly  wo. 
High  o'er  the  scene  the  curling  cloud  aspires, 
Fraught  with  a  nation's  fervid  sighs 
The  mighty  incense  seeks  the  skies, 
And  Heav'n  approves  the  scene — for  Hamilton  expires  ! 

[In  compliance  with  the  wishes  of  the  public  here,  Mr. 
Nott's  Discourse  will  make  part  of  the  next  number.] 


END  OF  NO. 


A  COLLECTION,  &c. 


NMII. 


*ROM  THE  FREDERICK-TOWN  HERALD. 

Death  of  General  Hamilton.—  Ox'this  day  it  is  but  decent, 
and  indeed  our  emotions  would  oblige  us,  to  muffle  the  rude 
voice  of  dissention  and  party  conflict*  in  the  mournful  task 
of  condoling  with  our  country  on  a  calamity,  which  nothing 
tut  the  loss  of  her  beloved  Washington  could  exceed,  and 
no  other  visitation  could  equal.  With  inexpressible  griefj 
with  a  heart  overflowing  with  sorrow,  and  sunk  and  depres- 
sed under  a  sense  of  the  common  affliction,  we  have  to  pre«- 
sent  a  confirmation  of  the  sad  tidings  that  General  Hamilton 
is  no  more  f  That  our  Hero  and  Patriot,  our  Statesman 
and  Orator,  the  Benefactor  of  this  nation  and  the  Stay  of 
her  best  and  last  hopes,  the  admiration  of  Europe,  whose 
glorious  eminence  and  combination  of  glories,  nor  Europe 
nor  the  World  can  this  day  surpass,  that  our  Pride,  our 
Boast,  and  our  Dependence,  is  taken  from  us,  "  gone  to  his 
death  bed,"  "  fallen  by  too  severe  a  fate,"  cut  off  in  the 
grime  of  his  maturity  and  the  fulness  of  all  his  excellence  !r- 

"  BUT  the  course  of  this  orb,  though  marked,  was  short. 
It  is  set  ;  never  to  return  !  —  Thou  sleepest  the  sleep  of 
death  !  But  we  are  not  unmindful  of  thee,  O  Achilles  j  in 
life  and  in  death  thou  art  equally  the  object  of  our  regard  and 
veneration  !" 


(96) 

C)N  such  an  occasion,  and  at  such  a  moment  as  this,  cleepf 
distress  but  chokes  invention,  and  would  fain  borrow  utter- 
ance for  the  last  melancholy  office.  Casting  our  eyes  on 
the  space  held  by  the  very  first  man  of  all  this  land,  and  the 
great  void  which  his  sudden  and  deplorable  fate  now  leaves, 
we  can  only  apply  the  words  of  Edmund  Burke  in  the  ar- 
dour of  his  feelings  for  the  loss  of  Johnson-—"  He  has  made 
a  chasm  which  not  only  nothing  can  fill  up,  but  which  no- 
thing has  a  tendency  to  fill  up — Hamilton  is  dead — Let  us 
go  to  the  next  best— There  is  nobody — No  man  can  be  said 
to  put  you  in  mind  of  Hamilton." — And  still  dwelling  on  his 
acknowledged  superiority  in  whatever  is  honourable  to  our 
nature,  with  a  full  allowance  for  the  general  imperfections  of 
that  nature,  and  an  admission  of  every  infirmity  particular- 
ly attributable  to  him,  we  may  further  use  the  concluding 
sentiment  of  Burke's  own  biographer,  that,  "  With  little  al- 
loy, and  so  much  sterling  value,  in  realms  in  which  great 
talents  are  frequent,  and  great  virtues  not  rare,  in  the  usual 
course  of  intellectual  and  practical  excellence,  centuries  may 
pass  before  Providence  again  bestow  an"  Alexander  Ha- 
milton. 


THE  affecting  manner  in  which  hrs  untimely  end  is  an- 
nounced on  all  sides,  and  every  where  heard,  and  in  which 
all  parties  and  all  classes  in  the  city  of  New^York  have  join- 
ed in  public  sympathy  and  lamentation,  and  the  pomp  of  fu- 
neral honours,  now  "  canonizes  and  sanctifies  a  character,* 
which  it  was  the  purpose  of  Washington,  in  one  of  the  last 
acts  of  his  life,  to  record  above  all  others.  The  truly  Chris- 
tian manner  of  his  dying,  will  also  interest  every  tender  and 
virtuous  mind ;  and  a  more  authentic  account  than  the  let- 
ter among  the  extracts  here  subjoined,  will  be  impatiently 
looked  for  to  explain  the  unfortunate  circumstances  which 
led  to  that  death,  in  his  duel  with  the  Vice-President,  Col. 


Burr,  on  Wednesday  the  llth  inst.  upon  the  Jersey  shore  : 
where,  by  a  like  catastrophe,  but  two  years  since,  the  grave 
robbed  him  of  a  son,  and  blasted  all  his  fond  expectation 
just  as  the  bud  of  youthful  promise  was  opening  into  the 
bloom  of  manhood.  Such  a  statement,  it  will  be  perceived, 
is  expected  in  the  Evening  Post  of  Mr.  Coleman,  than 
whom  no  man  perhaps,  out  of  the  weeping  and  bereft  family 
of  his  illustrious  friend,  can  more  fervently  bewail  that  loss 
which  he  knows  so  well  how  to  appreciate.  We  shall  deem 
it  a  duty  to  communicate  whatever  appears  on  this  unhappy 
subject,  of  a  nature  to  satisfy  anxiety,  or  to  afford  consola- 
tion under  the  most  awful  and  irreparable  blow,  which  it 
was  possible  for  a  people  to  sustain? 

SAME  PAPER. 

O  America  !  veil  thyself  in  black ! — Deep  mourns  the 
Eagle,  with  shattered  wing,  in  some  lone  spot — its  gayest 
plumage  lost — the  favourite,  o'er  whom  it  was  wont  to  ho- 
ver, one  cruel  blow  has  severed  from  the  world.  The  tears 
of  the  aged  burst  forth — the  withered  hand  trembles  in 
grief — the  youthful  patriots  mourn — Their  Chief  is  fallen ! — r 

Haste  !  even  now  he  bleeds ! — he  dies! *.Catch  the  stream 

that  flows  from  his  mighty  heart,  and  pour  it  in  thy  veins — 
Cultivate  the  laurel  for  his  memory,  and  earn  a  sprig  to 
grace  thy  manly  brows.  In  bliss  above,  his  spirit  is  receiv- 
ed— the  hand  of  mercy  is  stretched  forth — joy  rises  on  the 

soul. Ye  hosts  of  heaven,  assemble  thy  chosen  choir — 

croud  round  the  celestial  throne — raise  loud  the  song  of 

glory — send  forth  its  sound  on  golden  clarions Behold,  a 

WASHINGTON  and  a  HAMILTON,  again  in  gladness  and  in 
triumph  meet. — r— 

PASTORA. 


(98) 

SAME  PAPER. 

The  National  Loss.- — BEFORE  resuming  the  mournful  sub- 
ject which  shrouded  the  last  Herald,  we  must  relieve  our- 
selves by  expressing  the  uneasiness  we  have  felt  at  a  scrap 
under  the  name  of  an  Anecdote,  amidst  our  agitation  inad- 
vertently let  into  the  same  paper,  with  something  like  an 
appearance  of  levity,  when  our  Editorial  thoughts  were 
really  occupied,  as  indeed  they  still  are,  with  nothing  but  sad-, 
ness.  For  the  present  we  have  put  by  several  communica- 
tion?, and  given  up  every  other  subject,  since  that  of  Gen. 
Hamilton's  death  alone  engrosses  the  public  attention ;  nor 
can  we  help  regretting,  for  the  sake  of  our  country  readers, 
that  our  paper  is  not  large  enough  to  contain  at  full  length 
every  thing  which  appears  of  an  interesting  and  authentic 
nature  relative  to  an  event,  which  seems  to  have  spread  with 
the  force  of  an  electric  shock,  in  all  directions  accessible  to 
the  better  feelings,  or  even  the  compunctions  of  humanity. 
Not  having  it  in  our  power  to  republish  the  whole  as  it 
should  be,  we  must  be  content  to  fill  up  our  columns  with 
such  selections  from  the  mass  of  matter  in  the  New-York 
Evening  Post,  as  may  be  thought  most  essential,  noticing  a£ 
the  same  time  by  way  of  introduction,  whatever  is  most 
material  in  the  rest. 

WITH  respect  to  the  funeral  honours  paid  the  illustrious 
deceased,  there  is  a  melancholy  satisfaction  in  observing 
with  what  general  devotion  the  preparations  announced  in 
our  last,  have  been  carried  into  effect  in  the  city  of  New- 
York.  The  burial  took  place  on  Saturday  the  14th  ;  the 
procession  was  formed  agreeably  to  the  arrangements  pub- 
lished ;  and  the  day  exhibited  a  scene  altogether  one  of  the 
most  affecting  in  the  annals  of  death,  such  as  must  indeed 
have  been  "enough  to  melt  a  monumen^  of  marble."  Ac- 


C    99    ) 

^cording  to  appointment,  Mr.  Gouverncur  Morris,  oppressed 
and  labouring  under  the  weight  of  grief,  delivered  the  ex- 
tempore  address,  which  is  the  first  article  now  republished 
£n  compliance  with  the  expectations  excited  last  week.  In 
addition  to  what  was  done  in  New- York  oii  the  14th,  we  must 
not  pass  by  the  tribute  of  grateful  remembrance  rendered  by 
the  citizens  of  Philadelphia,  by  several  public  bodies  and 
Societies  in  both  cities,  by  the  Societies  of  Cincinnati  gene- 
rally, and  particularly  the  resolutions  of  the  Cincinnati  of 
New- York,  condoling  with  the  afflicted  Widow  of  their 
President-General,  cherishing  his  fame  with  the  balm  of 
affection,  and  as  a  lasting  mark  of  their  respect  voting  a  Mo 
nument  to  his  memory,  with  a  suitable  inscription,  in  Trinity 
Church.  Nor  can  we  here  forbear  adverting  to  the  singu- 
lar degree  of  kindness  publicly  proffered  by  some  on  the  fall 
pf  this  Great  Man,  who  were  most  violently  opposed  to  him 
while  living ;  as  if  obliged  now  by  an  irresistible  impulse 
xvhich  they  cannot  help,  to  do  justice  to  the  virtues  of  his 
heart,  and  the  noble  pre-eminence  of  his  mind  ;  and  in  es- 
pousing his  last  fatal  wrong,  to  assert  the  whole  tenour  of  his 
goodness,  and  defend  him  even  from  themselves.  It  is  even 
impossible  to  attest  his  glory  in  stronger  language,  than  that 
used  in  Cheetham's  American  Citizen,  where  General  Ha- 
milton is  represented  (in  the  words)  "  most  perfect."  In 
such  instances,  we  would  fain  consider  the  present  as  sin- 
cere, and  we  would  try  to  forget  the  past, 

RELATIVE  to  the  causes  which  have  produced  all  this 
mourning,  the  expected  statement  is  now  also  given  to  the 
public.  The  correspondence  which  shows  the  cause 
of  the  duel,  together  with  the  General's  observations  left 
sealed  up  with  his  will,  will  be  duly  considered  by  the 
public.  As  to  what  passed  on  the  ground,  the  short  account 
which  follows  is  all  that  the  seconds  of  the  parties  have  been 


tdble  to  agree  upon.  With  respect  to  a  material  fact  or  tWQ? 
whether  General  Hamilton  fired  at  Col.  Burr,  or  meant  tq 
fire  at  all,  it  seems  there  has  been  a  difference  of  opinion. 
But  we  think  every  body  must  acknowledge  that  Gen.  Ha- 
milton's friend,  Judge  Pendleton,  has  put  the  matter  beyond 
all  doubt  in  the  reasons  he  has  since  assigned  for  his  opinion  j 
and  Col.  Burr's  second,  Mr.  Van  Ness.,  is  certainly  mistaken. 
In  the  paper  of  observations,  left. sealed  up  by  Gen.  Hamil- 
ton, the  reader  will  see  that  he  had  "  resolved  (in  case  of  au 
u  opportunity71)  to  reserve  and  tlwow  away  his  first  fire,  and 
had  thoughts  even  of  reserving  his  second  fire,  thus  giving 
a  double  opportunity  to  Col.  Burr,  to  pause  and  reflect.'' 
The  circumstances  so  impressively  stated  by  Mr.  Pendleton, 
are  conclusive  evidence  that  his  determination  remained  un- 
altered. He  stood  exposed  to  suffer  death  from  the  fury  of 
his  antagonist,  without  an  attempt  to  inflict  it — He  gave  up 
his  own  life,  so  precious  to  the  world,  rather  than  offer  to  pre- 
serve it  by  aiming  at  the  life  of  his  destroyer.  With  this 
ill-fated  magnanimity  of  spirit,  the  unrelenting  malevolence 
to  which  he  sunk  a  victim  must  now  abide  a  contrast : — CoL 
Burr  himself  has  the  conviction  to  undergo,  a  conviction  not 
much  calculated,  one  would  suppose,  to  add  to  his  triumph 
or  his  happiness,  that  on  a  mere  vague  pretence  of  injury,  he 
has  committed  the  last  great  injury  of  all  on  a  man,  who, 
while  in  the  very  act  of  suffering  it,  was  incapable  of  doing 
him  harm,  under  the  influence  of  those  benign  principle^ 
which  he  chose  rather  to  ratify  with  his  blood  than  to  offend 
against. 

WE  have  said  unrelenting  malevolence. ..We  should  no£ 
have  said  it,  and  thus  contributed  to  prejudge  his  case,  if 
there  was  any  prospect  of  Col.  Burr's  becoming  amenable  to 
the  laws,  as  he  and  his  second  ought  to  be.  For  himself  he 
has  fled  to  the  southward,  and  there  is  no  likelihood  that  his 


(  101  )     I,-,   . 

friend,  Governor  Bloomfield  of  New- Jersey,  in  winch  state 
the  crime  was  perpetrated,  will  demand  his  being  deliver- 
ed up  for  trial.  But  if  there  ever  was  an  instance,  in  which 
the  law  should  take  its  course,  this  duel  is  one  where  every- 
thing would  call  loudly  for  an  example  to  be  made.  In 
most  instances  of  the  kind,  arising  from  a  violent  provoca- 
tion, or  from  the  sudden  heat  of  passion,  in  which  death 
ensues,  juries,  in  their  indulgence  for  human  frailty,  have 
been  apt  to  get  over  the  rigour  of  the  law,  and  when,  they 
could  not  entirely  acquit,  have  converted  the  offence  into 
manslaughter  only.  But  if  murder  be,  what  it  is  defined, 
"  an  unlawful  killing  with  malice  aforethought,  express  or 
implied,"  if  this  constitute  murder,  we  ask  the  reader  to  ac- 
eompany  us  through  the  whole  of  the  correspondence  and 
narrative  preceding  the  duel,  in  which  the  cause  of  quarrel 
is  explained,  and  then  say  whether  there  has  not  been  on  the 
pan  of  Col.  Burr,  "  malice  aforethought"  the  most "  express," 
wanton,  and  inplacable. 

• 

WE  are  thus  confident  in  our  expressions,  because  we 
have  seen  every  thing  offered  in  his  behalf  by  his  own  Se- 
cond, but  which  does  not  in  the  least  contradict  the  other 
statement ;  which  does  not  indeed  attempt  to  introduce  as  a 
document  in  the  affair,  a  paper  hitherto  known  only  to  Col* 
Burr  and  his  Second,  being  a  sort  of  communication  which 
his  Second  was  verbally  to  make  (but  did  not  make  as  he 
admits  himself  in  the  terms  used)  to  Gen.  Hamilton,  on  the 
subject  of  fancied  wrongs  to  the  cliaracter  of  Col.  Burr,, 
from  time  to  time  supposed  to  proceed  from  Gen.  Hamilton  -f 
but  which  communication,  if  it  had  been  made,  was  only  of 
a  tendency  to  aggravate,  and  goes  to  confirm  our  belief  of 
Col.  Burr's  "  predetermined  hostility,"  which  nothing  rea- 
sonable could  ever  satisfy  or  appease... Yet,  as  Mr.  Coleman 
justly  remarks^  "  this  foisting  a  secret,  and  till  now  an  un- 


(   102  ) 

heard  of  paper,  into  the  genuine  correspondence  (at  least) 
shows  in  no  equivocal  manner,  that  the  writer  was  conscious 
that  the  correspondence  which  really  took  place,  presents  a 
case  no  way  favourable  to  his  principal".. .Indeed  it  is  now 
matter  of  astonishment  and  indignation  to  us,  how  the* 
Morning  Chronicle  of  N.  York,  the  paper  under  Col.  Burr's 
control,  should  have  had  the  audacity  to  assert,  by  way  of 
assurance,  "  that  when  a  fair  and  candid  statement  was  laid 
before  the  public,  the  conduct  of  Mr.  Burr  would  be  justifi- 
ed by  every  disinterested  and  unprejudiced  man"...But  we 
will  freely  leave  it  to  every  such  man  to  decide.  For  our- 
selves, we  are  convinced  that  had  Col.  Burr,  in  the  late  con- 
test, succeeded  in  being  elected  Governor  of  New- York,  our 
country  would  not  now  be  deploring  this  tragic  work  of  his 
hand :  But  in  the  sullenness  and  mortification  of  disappoint- 
ment, he  seems  to  have  whetted  up  a  desperate  vengeance, 
which  was  to  lower  Gen.  Hamilton,  who  it  is  known  had 
not  countenanced  his  recent  pretensions  with  the  Federalists* 
Else,  had  a  jealous  care  of  his  reputation  been  the  sole  mo- 
tive, why  should  those  opponents,  all  the  Clintons  and  the  Li- 
vingstons, who  have  most  openly  and  successfully  reprobated 
him,  have  escaped  his  rage  ?  If  animosity  for  imagined  in- 
sult or  defiance  alone  prompted  him,  where  was  all  his  fierce- 
ness and  tenacity  of  honour,  when,  in  the  duel  with  his 
friend  Svvartv/out,  Mr.  De  Witt  Clinton  exclaimed  a  wish 
**  that  he  had  the  Principal  there?"  But  no!  "  Revolving 
in  the  gloomy  recesses  of  his  mind,5T  the  resentment  of  CoU 
Burr  has  taken  a  different  turn ;.  or  rather  the  craft  of  his 
malignity  has  sought  a  different  object  for  its  safer  gratifica- 
tion :  and  thus  at  the  very  moment  in  which  it  was  insisted, 
that  "  Federalists,  and  Federalists  alcne,  voted  for  CoL 
Burr,"  on  his  part  he  was  plotting  destruction  to  the  main 
prop  and  hope  of  Federalism  in  these  States.  Surely  we 
have  some  right  to  complain  ;  surely  this  man  has  been  des- 


(  103  ) 

lined  to  us  for  a  curse,  and  a  vexation  without  end.  But  at 
this  moment  we  forget  every  mischief  but  the  present ;  we 
think  not  of  him  as  a  chief  among  the  original  authors  of  our 
political  ruin,  but  we  start  with  horror  from  those  hands 
now  reeking  with  the  blood  of  Hamilton...This  last  sin  has 
swallowed  up  every  other.. .It  is  a  spot  which  nothing  can 
wash  out.. .Col.  Burr  may,  if  he  pleases,  enjoy  the  glory  of 
this  transgression...but  though  he  shares  not  the  fate  of  the 
wretch  who  fired  the  temple  of  Ephesus  to  eternize  his  name, 
which  his  countrymen  would  never  afterwards  repeat ;  though 
Col.  Burr  will  be  remembered  and  have  celebrity,  it  will 
now  be,  because 

"  Damned  to  everlasting  fame." 

It  is  impossible  it  should  be  otherwis  e  :  it  is  impossible  we 
should  restrain  these  sentiments,  since  we  find  the  direful 
blow  to  have  been  the  entire  consequence  ^ind  fixed  purpose 
of  his  own  subtle,  premeditated,  fiend-like  rancour ;  pursu- 
ing without  remorse,  and  as  it  were  with  an  imprecation  not 
to  stop  until  he  had  pushed  into  the  grave.  He  succeed- 
ed ;  the  Genius  of  Evil  was  ascendant ;  and  the  most  esti- 
mable and  distinguished  of  the  survivors  of  Washington, 
the  orb  of  transcendent  lustre,  the  most  "  finished  man  in 
this  exigent  time,"  our  guardian,  beloved,  and  ever  to  be 
lamented  Hamilton,  fell !... 

"  Oh  what  a  fall  was  there,  my  Countrymen  ! 
««  Then  you  and  I,  and  all  of  us  fell  down, 
"  Whilst  bloody  treason  flourished  over  us.'* 


(  104) 

THE  following  Sermon  has  deservedly 'engaged  "an  univer- 
sal share  of  public  attention.  The  successful  manner  in 
which  the  author  combats  the  fashionable  vice  of  duelling, 
requires  that  his  production  should  be  extensively  circulated. 
The  distant  reader  will  here  see  in  what  terms  a  Minister 
of  God,  standing  before  his  altar,  feels  himself  justified  in 
speaking  of  the  virtues,  talents,  and  public  services,  of  the 
great  Hamilton.  In  the  passage  beginning  with  the  apos- 
trophe "  Approach  and  behold"  how  elegant,  how  deeply  af- 
fecting, how  sublime,  is  he  !  Perhaps  a  passage  of  equal 
kngth  is  not  to  be  any  where  found,  in  our  language,  supe- 
rior to  this. 


A  DISCOURSE, 

Delivered  in  the  North  Dutch  Church,  in  the  City  of  Albany, 
occasioned  by  the  ever  to  be  lamented  Death  of  General 
ALEXANDER  HAMILTON — July  29,  18O4. 

BY  ELIPHALET  JVOTT,  A.  M. 

PASTOR   OF  THE  PRESBYTERIAN  CHURCH  IN  SAID  CITY. 


IT.  SAMUEL,  i.  19. — How  are  the  Mighty  Fallen  ! 

THE  occasion  explains  the  choice  of  my  subject.  A  sub- 
ject on  which  I  enter  in  obedience  to  your  request.  You 
have  assembled  to  express  your  elegiac  sorrows,  and  sad 
and  solemn  weeds  cover  you. 

BEFORE  such  an  audience,  and  on  such  an  occasion,  I 
enter  on  the  duty  assigned  me  with  trembling.  Do  not 
mistake  my  meaning.  I  tremble  indeed — not,  however, 


(   105  ) 

through  fear  of  failing  to  merit  your  applause ;  for  what  have 
I  to  do  with  that  when  addressing  the  dying,  and  treading  on 
the  ashes  of  the  dead — Not  through  fear  of  failing,  justly,  to 
portray  the  character  of  that  great  man  who  is  at  once  the 
theme  of  my  encomium  and  regret  :  He  needs  not  eulogy. 
His  work  is  finished,  and  death  has  removed  him  beyond 
my  censure,  and  I  would  fondly  hope,  through  grace,  above 
my  praise- 

•x 

You  will  ask  then,  why  I  tremble  ?  I  tremble  to  think 
that  I  am  called  to  attack  from  this  place  a  crime,  the  very 
klea  of  which  almost  freezes  one  with  horror — a  crime,  too, 
which  exists  among  the  polite  and  polished  orders  of  socie- 
ty, and  which  is  accompanied  with  every  aggravation  ;  con> 
mitted  with  cool  deliberation — and  openly  in  the  face  of 
day! 

BUT  I  have  a  duty  to  perform.  And  difficult  and  awful 
as  that  duty  is,  I  will  not  shrink  from  it. 

WOULD  to  God  my  talents  were  adequate  to  the  occasion. 
But  such  as  they  are,  I  devoutly  proffer  them  to  unfold  the 
nature  and  counteract  the  influence  of  that  barbarous  custom, 
which,  like  a  resistless  torrent,  is  undermining  the  founda- 
tions of  civil  government — breaking  down  the  barriers  of 
social  happiness,  and  sweeping  away  virtue,  talents,  and  do- 
mestic felicity,  in  its  desolating  course, 

ANOTHER  and  an  illustrious  character — a  father — a  gene- 
ral— a  statesman — the  very  man  who  stood  on  an  eminence 
and  without  a  rival,  among  sages  and  heroes,  the  future 
hope  of  his  country  in  danger — this  man,  yielding  to  the  in- 
fluence of  a  custom  which  deserves  our  eternal  reproba- 
tion, has  been  brought  to  an  untimely  end. 


(  106  ) 

THAT  the  cfeaths  of  great  and  useful  men  should  be  par- 
ticularly noticed,  is  equally  the  dictate  of  reason  and  revela- 
tion. The  tears  of  Israel  flowed  at  the  decease  of  good  Jo- 
SIAH,  and  to  his  memory  the  funeral  women  chanted  the 

solemn  dirge. 

* 

• 

BUT  neither  examples  nor  arguments  are  necessary  to 
wake  the  sympathies  of  a  grateful  people  on  such  occasions. 
The  death  of  public  benefactors  surcharges  the  heart,  and  it 
spontaneously  disburdens  itself  by  a  flow  of  sorrows. 

SUCH  was  the  death  of  WASHINGTON  :  to  embalm 
whose  memory,  and  perpetuate  whose  deathless  fame,  we 
lent  our  feeble,  but  unnecessary  services.  Such,  also,  and 
more  peculiarly  so,  has  been  the  death  of  HAMILTON. 

THE  tidings  of  the  former  moved  us — mournfully  moved 
us — and  we  wept.  The  account  of  the  latter  chilled  our  hopes, 
and  curdled  our  blood.  The  former  died  in  a  good  old  age  ; 
the  latter  was  cut  off  in  the  midst  of  his  usefulness.  The 
former  was  a  customary  providence  :  we  saw  in  it,  if  I  may 
speak  so,  the  finger  of  GOD,  and  rested  in  his  sovereignty. 
The  latter  is  not  attended  with  this  soothing  circumstance. 

THE  fall  of  HAMILTON  owes  its  existence  to  mad  delibe- 
ration, and  is  marked  by  violence.  The  time,  the  place,  the 
circumstances,  are  arranged  with  barbarous  coolness.  The 
instrument  of  death  is  levelled  in  day-light,  and  with  well  di- 
rected skill  pointed  at  his  heart.  Alas  !  the  event  has  proven 
that  it  was  but  too  well  directed.  Wounded,  mortally  wound- 
ed, on  the  very  spot  which  still  smoked  with  the  blood  of  a 
favourite  son,  into  the  arms  of  his  indiscreet  and  cruel  friend 
the  father  fell. 


(  107) 

AH  !  had  he  fallen  in  the  course  of  nature  ;  or  jeopardiz- 
ing his  life  in  defence  of  his  country,  had  he  fallen But 

he  did  not.  He  fell  in  single  combat — Pardon  my  mis- 
take— he  did  not  fall  in  single  combat.  His  noble  nature 
refused  to  endanger  the  life  of  his  antagonist.  But  he  ex- 
posed his  own  life.  This  was  his  crime  :  and  the  sacred- 
ness  of  my  office  forbids  that  I  should  hesitate  explicitly  to 
declare  it  so. 

HE  did  not  hesitate  to  declare  it  so  himself :  "  My  reli- 
gious and  moral  principles  are  strongly  opposed  to  duel- 
ing." These  are  his  words  before  he  ventured  to  the  field 
of  death.  "  I  view  the  late  transaction  with  sorrow  and 
contrition."  These  are  his  words  after  his  return. 

HUMILIATING  end  of  illustrious  greatness  ! — How  are  the 
"mighty  fallen  /  And  shall  the  mighty  thus  fall  ?  Thus  shall 
the  noblest  lives  be  sacrificed  and  the  richest  blood  be  spilt? 
Tell  it  not  in  Gath  ;  publish  it  not  in  the  streets  of  Askelon  I 

THINK  not  that  the  fatal  issue  of  the  late  inhuman  inter- 
view was  fortuitous.  No ;  the  Hand  that  guides  unseen 
the  arrow  of  the  archer,  steadied  and  directed  the  arm  of 
the  duellist.  And  why  did  it  thus-  direct  it  ?  As  a  solemn 
memento — as  a  loud  and  awful  warning  to  a  community 
where  justice  has  slumbered — and  slumbered — and  slum- 
bered— while  the  wife  has  been  robbed  of  her  partner,  the 
mother  of  her  hopes,  and  life  after  life  rashly,  and  with  an 
air  of  triumph,  sported  away. 

4 

AND  was  there,  O  my  GOD  !  no  other  sacrifice  valuable 
enough — would  the  cry  of  no  other  blood  reach  the  place  of 
retribution  and  wake  justice,  dozing  over  her  awful  seat ! 


BUT  though  justice  should  still  slumber  and  retribution 
be  delayed,  we  who  are  the  ministers  of  that  GOD  who  will 
judge  the  judges  of  the  world,  and  whose  malediction  rests 
on  him  who  does  his  work  unfaithfully,  we  will  not  keep 
silence. 

I  FEEL,  my  brethren,  how  incongruous  my  subject  is  with 
the  place  I  occupy. 

IT  is  humiliating ;  it  is  distressing  in  a  Christian  country, 
and  in  churches  consecrated  to  the  religion  of  JESUS,  to  be 
obliged  to  attack  a  crime  which  outstrips  barbarism,  and 
would  even  sink  the  character  of  a  generous  savage.  But 
humiliating  as  it  is,  it  is  necessary. 

AND  must  we  then,  even  for  a  moment,  forget  the  ele- 
vation on  which  grace  hath  placed  us,  and  the  light  which 
the  gospel  sheds  around  us  ?  Must  we  place  ourselves  back 
in  the  midst  of  barbarism  ?  And  instead  of  hearers  soften- 
ed to  forgivness  by  the  love  of  JESUS  ;  filled  with  noble  sen- 
timents towards  our  enemies,  and  waiting  for  occasions,  after 
the  exampl^  of  Divinity,  to  do  them  good— instead  of  such 
hearers,  must  we  suppose  ourselves  addressing  hearts  petri- 
fied to  goodness,  incapable  of  mercy,  and  boiling  with  re- 
venge ? — Must  we,  O  my  GOD  !  instead  of  exhorting  those 
who  hear  us,  to  go  on  unto  perfection,  adding  to  virtue  cha- 
r//z/,  arid  to  charity  brotherly  kindness — must  we,  as  if  sur- 
rounded by  an  auditory  just  emerging  out  of  darkness  and 
still  cruel  and  ferocious,  reason  to  convince  them  that  re- 
venge is  improper,  and  that  to  commit  deliberate  murder,  is 
sin? 

YES,  we  must  do  this.     Repeated  violations  of  the  law, 


(  109) 

and  the  sanctuary,  which  the  guilty  find  in  public  sentiment, 
prove  that  it  is  necessary. 

WITHDRAW  therefore  for  a  moment,  ye  celestial  spirits — 
ye  holy  angels  accustomed  to  hover  round  these  ALTARS, 
and  listen  to  those  strains  of  grace  which  heretofore  have 
filled  this  House  of  God.  Other  subjects  occupy  us.  With- 
draw therefore  and  leave  us — -leave  us  to  exhort  Christian 
parents  to  restrain  their  vengeance,  and  at  least  to  keep 
back  their  hands  from  blood — to  exhort  youth,  nurtured  in 
Christian  families,  not  rashly  to  sport  with  life,  nor  lightly  to 
wring  the  widow's  heart  with  sorrows,  and  fill  the  orphan's 
eye  with  tears. 

IN  accomplishing  the  object  which  is  before  me,  it  will 
not  be  expected,  as  it  is  not  necessary,  that  I  should  give  a 
history  of  Duelling.  You  need  not  be  informed  that  it  ori- 
ginated in  a  dark  and  barbarous  age.  The  polished  Greek 
knew  nothing  of  it — The  noble  Roman  was  above  it.  Rome 
held  in  equal  detestation  the  man  who  exposed  his  life  unne- 
cessarily, and  him,  who  refused  to  expose  it  when  the  pub- 
lic good  required  it*.  Her  heroes  were  superior  to  private 
contests.  They  indulged  no  vengeance  except  against  the 
enemies  of  their  country.  Their  swords  were  not  drawn 
unless  her  honour  was  in  danger ;  which  honour  they  de- 
fended with  their  swords  not  only,  but  shielded  with  their 
bosoms  also,  and  were  then  prodigal  of  their  blood. 

BUT  though  Greece  and  Rome  knew  nothing  of  Duelling^ 
it  exists.  It  exists  among  us  :  and  it  exists  at  once  the  most 
rash,  the  most  absurd  and  guilty  practice,  that  ever  disgrac- 
ed a  Christian  nation. 

*  Sallust  de  beH.  Catil.  ix. 


( 

GUILTY — Because  it  is  a  violation  of  the  law.  What  law  ? 
The  Law  of  GOD.  THOU  SHALT  NOT  KILL.  This 
prohibition  was  delivered  by  GOD  himself,  at  Sinai,  to  the 
Jews.  And,  that  it  is  of  universal  and  perpetual  obligation, 
is  manifest  from  the  nature  of  the  crime  prohibited  not  on- 
ly, but  also  from  the  express  declaration  of  the  Christian 
Lawgiver,  who  hath  recognized  its  justice,  and  added  to  it 
the  sanctions  of  his  own  authority. 

"  THOU  shalt  not  kill."  Who  ?  Thou,  creature.  I  the 
Creator,  have  given  life,  and  thou  shalt  not  take  it  away ! 
When  and  under  what  circumstances  may  I  not  take  away 
life  ?  Never,  and  under  no  circumstances,  without  my  per- 
mission.— It  is  obvious,  that  no  discretion  whatever  is  here 
given.  The  prohibition  is  addressed  to  every  individual 
where  the  law  of  GOD  is  promulgated,  and  the- terms  made 
use  of  are  express  and  unequivocal.  So  that  life  cannot  be 
taken  under  any  pretext,  without  incurring  guilt,  unless  by 
a  permission  sanctioned  by  the  same  authority  which  sanc- 
tions the  general  law  prohibiting  it. 

FROM  this  law  it  is  granted  there  are  exceptions.  These 
exceptions,  however,  do  not  result  from  any  sovereignty 
which  one  creature  has  over  the  existence  of  another ;  but 
from  the  positive  appointment  of  that  eternal  Being,  whose 
is  the  world  and  the  fullness  thereof.  In  "whose  hand  is  the 
soul  of  every  living  creature,  and  the  breath  of  all  mankind. 

EVEN  the  authority  which  we  claim  over  the  lives  of  ani- 
mals is  not  founded  on  a  natural  right,  but  on  a  positive 
grant  made  by  the  Deity  himself  to  Noah  and  his  sons  *. 
This  grant  contains  our  warrant  for  taking  the  lives  of  ani- 

*  Gen.  be.  3. 


( 111 ) 

mals.  But  if  we  may  not  take  the  lives  of  atiimals  without 
permission  from  GOD,  much  less  may  we  the  life  of  man, 
made  in  his  image. 

IN  what  cases  then  has  the  Sovereign  of  life  given  this 
permission?  IN  RIGHTFUL  WAR  * — BY  THE  CIVIL  MAGIS- 
TRATE J"  ;  and  IN  NECESSARY  SELF-DEFENCE  J.  Besides  these, 
I  do  not  hesitate  to  declare,  that  in  the  oracles  of  GOD 
there  are  no  other. 

HE  therefore  who  takes  life  in  any  other  case,  under 
whatever  pretext,  takes  it  unwarrantably,  is  guilty  of  what 
the  scriptures  call  murder,  and  exposes  himself  to  the  male- 
diction of  that  GOD  who  is  an  avenger  of  blood,  and  who 
hath  said,  At  the  hand  of  every  marfs  brother  will  I  require 
the  life  of  man — Whoso  shedeth  marts  blood,  by  man  shall  his 

blood  be  shed. 

i  -  .    .       ' 

THE  duellist  contravenes  the  law  of  GOD  not  only,  but 
the  law  of  man  also.  To  the  prohibition  of  the  former  have 
been  added  the  sanctions  of  the  latter.  Life  taken  in  a 
duel,  by  the  common  law,  is  murder.  And  where  this  is  not 
the  case,  the  giving  and  receiving  of  a  challenge  only,  is 
by  statute,  considered  a  high  misdemeanor,  for  which  the 
principal  and  his  second  are  declared  infamous,  and  disfran- 
chised for  twenty  years. 

UNDER  what  accumulated  circumstances  of  aggravation 
does  the  duellist  jeopardize  his  own  life,  or  take  the  life  of 
his  antagonist? 

*  2  Sam.  x,  12.    Jer.  xlviii,  10.    Luke,  iij,  14.         f  E*.  x*«»  12. 
\  Ex.  xxii,  2. 


(112) 

I  AM  sensible  that  in  a  licentious  age,  and  when  laws  arc 
made  to  yield  to  the  vices  of  those  who  move  in  the  higher 
circles,  this  crime  is  called  by  I  know  not  what  mild  and  ac- 
commodating name.  But  before  these  altars  ;  in  this  house 
of  GOD,  what  is  it  ?  It  is  MURDER— deliberate,  aggravated, 
MURDER. 

IF  the  duellist  deny  this,  let  him  produce  his  warrant 
from  the  Author  of  life,  for  taking  away  from  his  creature 
the  life  which  had  been  sovereignly  given.  If  he  cannot 
do  this,  beyond  all  controversy,  he  is  a  murderer ;  for  mur- 
der consists  in  taking  away  life  without  the  permission,  and 
contrary  to  the  prohibition  of  him  who  gave  it. 

WHO  is  it  then  that  calls  the  duellist  to  the  dangerous  and 
deadly  combat  ?  Is  it  GOD  ?  No ;  on  the  contrary  he  for- 
bids it.  Is  it  then  his  country  ?  No ;  she  also  utters  her 
prohibitory  voice.  Who  is  it  then?  A  man  of  honour. 
And  who  is  this  man  of  honour  ?  A  man  perhaps  whose  ho- 
nour is  a  name — who  prates  with  polluted  lips  about  the 
sacredness  of  character,  when  his  own  is  stained  with  crimes, 
and  needs  but  the  single  shade  of  murder  to  complete  the 
dismal  and  sickly  picture* 

EVERY  transgression  of  the  divine  law  implies  great 
guilt,  because  it  is  the  transgression  of  infinite  authority. 
But  the  crime  of  deliberately  and  lightly  taking  life,  has  pe- 
culiar aggravations.  It  is  a  crime  committed  against  the 
written  law  not  only,  but  also  against  the  dictates  of  reason, 
the  remonstrances  of  conscience,  and  every  tender  and  ami- 
able feeling  of  the  heart. 

To  the  unfortunate  sufferer,  it  is  the  wanton  violation  of 
his  most  sacred  rights.  It  snatches  him  from  his  friends 


( 


and  his  comforts  ;  terminates  his  state  of  trial,  an  d  pre- 
cipitates him,  uncalled  for  and  perhaps  unprepared,  into 
the  presence  of  his  Judge. 

You  will  say  the  duellist  feels  no  malice.  Be  it  so* 
Malice,  indeed,  is  murder  in  principle.  But  there  may 
be  murder  in  reason,  and  in  fact,  where  there  is  no  malice. 
Some  other  unwarrantable  passion  or  principle  may  lead  to 
the  unlawful  taking  of  human  life. 

THE  highwayman,  who  cuts  the  throat  and  rifles  the 
pocket  of  the  passing  traveller,  feels  no  malice.  And  could 
he,  with  equal  ease  and  no  greater  danger  of  detection, 
have  secured  his  booty  without  taking  life,  he  would  have 
stayed  his  arm  oyer  the  palpitating  bosom  of  his  victim,  and 
let  the  plundered  suppliant  pass. 

WOULD  the  imputation  of  cowardice  have  been  inevitable 
to  the  duellist,  if  a  challenge  had  not  been  given  or  accept- 
ed ?  The  imputation  of  want  had  been  no  less  inevitable  to 
the  robber,  if  the  money  of  the  passing  traveller  had  not  been 

secured. 

~~  ....  .'• ,.  \ .  •} 

WOULD  the  duellist  have  been  willing  to  have  spared  the 
life  of  his  antagonist,  if  the  point  of  honour  could  otherwise 
have  been  gained  ?  So  would  the  robber  if  the  point  of  pro- 
perty could  have  been.  Who  can  say  that  the  motives  of 
the  one  are  not  as  urgent  as  the  motives  of  the  other  ?  And 
the  means  by  which  both  obtain  the  object  of  their  wishes 
are  the  same. 

THUS,  according  to  the  dictates  of  reason,  as  well  as  the 
law  of  GOD,  the  highwayman  and  the  duellist  stand  on 
ground  equally  untenable  ;  and  support  their  gailty  havpc  of 
the  humau  race  by  arguments  equally  fallacious. 


Is  duelliftg  guilty  ?  So  it  is 

£ ?i:  '  "V'"r     "'  , 

ABSURD... .It  is  absurd  as  a  punishment,  for  it  admits  of 
no  proportion  to  crimes :  and  besides,  virtue  and  vice, 
guilt  and  innocence,  are  equally  exposed  by  it,  to  death  or 
suffering.  As  a  reparation,  it  is  still  more  absurd,  for  it 
m-akes  the  injured  liable  to  a  still  greater  injury.  And  as 
the  vindication  of  personal  character,  it  is  absurd  even  be- 
yond madness. 

ONE  man  of  honour,  by  some  inadvertence,  or  perhaps 
with  design,  injures  the  sensibility  of  another  man  of  ho- 
nour. In  perfect  character  the  injured  gentleman  resents 
it.  He  challenges  the  offender.  The  offender  accepts  the 
challenge.  The  time  is  fixed.  The  place  is  agreed  upon. 
The  circumstances,  with  an  air  of  solemn  mania,  are  arrang- 
ed ;  and  the  principals,  with  their  seconds  and  surgeons,  re- 
tire under  the  covert  of  some  solitary  hill,  or  upon  the  mar- 
gin of  some  unfrequented  beach,  to  settle  this  important 
question  of  honour,  by  stabbing  or  shooting  at  each  other. 

ONE  or  the  other,  or  both  the  parties,  fall  in  this  polite  and 
gentlemanlike  contest.  And  what  does  this  prove  ?  It  proves 
that  one  or  the  other,  or  both  of  them,  as  the  case  may  be, 
are  marksmen.  But  it  affords  no  evidence  that  either  of 
them  possess  honour,  probity,  or  talents. 

'  •  •    •       •  »    i .  -?». 

;  IT  is  true  that  he  who  falls  in  single  combat,  has  the  ho- 
nour of  being  murdered :  and  he  who  takes  his  life,  the  ho- 
nour of  a  murderer.  Besides  this,  I  know  not  of  any  glory 
which  can  redound  to  the  infatuated  combatants,  except  it  be 
what  results  from  having  extended  the  circle  of  wretched 
widows,  and  added  to  the  number  of  hapless  orphans. 
**.•»  •'.-•,• 

AND  yet,  terminate  as '.it  will,  this  frantic  meeting,  by  a 


(   110 

kind  of  magic  influence,  entirely  varnishes  over  a  defective 
and  smutty  character;  transforms  vice  to  virtue,  coward- 
ice to  courage  ;  makes  falsehood  truth  ;  guik,  innocence.... 
In  one  word,  it  gives  a  new  complexion  to  the  whole  state 
of  things.  The  Ethiopian  changes  his  skin,  the  leopard  his 
spot,  and  the  debauched  and  treacherous. ...having  shot 
away  the  infamy  of  a  sorry  life,  comes  back  from  the  field  of 
perfectibility  quite  regenerated,  and,  in  the  fullust  sense,  an 
honourable  man.  He  is  now  fit  for  the  company  of  gentle- 
men. He  is  admitted  to  that  company,  and  should  he  again 
by  acts  of  vileness  stain  this  purity  of  character  so  nobly  ac- 
quired, and  should  any  one  have  the  affrontery  to  say  he  has 
done  so,  again  he  stands  ready  to  vindicate  his  honour,  and 
by  another  act  of  homicide,  to  wipe  away  the  stain  which 
has  been  attached  to  it. 

I  MIGHT  illustrate  this  article  by  example.  I  might  pro- 
duce instances  of  this  mysterious  transformation  of  charac- 
ter, in  the  sublime  circles  of  moral  refinement,  furnished  by 
the  higher  orders  of  the  fashionable  world,  which  the  mere 
firing  of  pistols  has  produced. 

BUT  the  occasion  is  too  awful  for  irony. 

ABSURD  as  duelling  is,  were  it  absurd  only,  though  we 
might  smile  at  the  weakness  and  pity  the  folly  of  its  abettors, 
there  would  be  no  occasion  for  seriously  attacking  them^— 
But  to  what  has  been  said,  I  add,  that  duelling  is  rash  find 
presumptuous. 

LIFE  is  the  gift  of  GOD,  and  it  was  never  bestowed  to  be 
sported  with.  To  each  the  Sovereign  of  the  universe  has 
marked  out  a  sphere  to  move  in,  and  assigned  a  part  to  act. 
This  part  respects  ourselves  not  only,  but  others  also. — Each 
lives  for  the  benefit  of  all. 


(116) 

As  in  the  system  of  nature  the  sun  shines,  not  to  display 
rts  own  brightness  and  answer  its  own  convenience,  but  to 
warm,  enlighten,  and  bless  the  world ;  so  in  the  system  of 
animated  beings,  there  is  a  dependence,  a  correspondence, 
and  a  relation,  through  an  infinitely  extended,  dying  and  re- 
viving universe-— in  which  no  man  llveth  to  himself,  and  no 
man  dielh  to  himself.  Friend  is  related  to  friend  ;  the  fa- 
ther to  his  family ;  the  individual  to  community*  To  every 
member  of  which,  having  fixed  his  station  and  assigned  his 
tlary,  the  GOD  of  nature  says,  "  Keep  this  trust — 'defend 
this  post.7*  For  whom  ?  For  thy  friends— thy  family — thy 
country.  And  having  received  such  a  charge,  and  for  such 
a  purpose,  to  desert  it  is  rashness  and  temerity. 

SIXCE  the  opinions  of  men  are  as  they  are,  do  you  ask, 
Jio\v  you  shall  avoid  the  imputation  of  cowardice,  if  you  do 
not  fight  when  you  are  injured  ?  Ask  your  family  how  you 
will  avoid  the  imputation  of  cruelty — ask  your  conscience 
how  you  will  avoid  the  imputation  of  guilt — ask  GOD  how 
you  will  avoid  his  malediction,  if  you  do  ?  These  are  pre- 
vious questions.  Let  these  first  be  answered,  and  it  will  be- 
easy  to  reply  to  any  which  may  follow  them. 

IF  you  only  accept  a  challenge  when,  you  believe  in  your 
conscience  that  duelling  is  wrong,  you  act  the  coward.  The 
dastardly  fear  of  the  world  governs  you.  Awed  by  its  me- 
naces, you  conceal  your  sentiments,  appear  in  disguise,  and 
act  in  guilty  conformity  to  principles  not  your  own,  and  that 
too  in  the  most  solemn  moment,  and  when  engaged  in  an  act 
which  exposes  you  to  death. 

BUT  if  it  be  rashness  to  accept,  how  passing  rashness  is 
it,  in  a  sinner,  to  give  a  challenge  ?  Does  it  become  himy 
whose  life  is  measured  out  by  crimes,  to  be  extreme  to 


e  w  3 


ftiark,  and  punctilious  to  resent,  whatever  is  amiss  In  others  f 
Must  the  duellist,  who  now  disdaining  to  forgive,  so  imperi- 
ously demands  satisfaction  to  the  uttermost  —  must  this  man 
himself,  trembling  at  the  recollection  of  his  offences,  present- 
ly appear  a  suppliant  before  the  mercy  seat  of  GOD  ?  Imagine 
this,  and  the  case  is  not  imaginary,  and  you  cannot  conceive 
an  instance  of  greater  inconsistency,  or  of  more  presump- 
tuous arrogance.  Wherefore,  avenge  not  yourselves^  but  rath- 
er give  place  unto  wrath  ;  for  vengeance  is  mine,  I  will  repay 
it)  salth  the  LORD. 

Do  you  ask,  then,  how  you  shall  conduct  towards  your 
enemy  who  hath  lightly  done  you  wrong  ?  If  he  be  hungry, 
feed  him  j  if  naked,  clothe  hinjjiif,thirscy,  give  him  drink* 
Such,  had  you  preferred  your  question  to  Jesus  Christ,  is 
the  answer  he  had  given  you.  By  observing  which,  you 
will  usually  subdue,  and  always  act  more  honourably  than 
your  enemy, 

I  FEEL,  my  brethren,  as  a  minister  of  JESUS  and  a  teach- 
rr  of  his  gospel,  a  noble  elevation  on  this  article* 

COMPARE  the  conduct  of  the  Christian,  acting  in  conform- 
ity to  the  principles  of  religion,  and  of  the  duellist,  acting  in 
conformity  to  the  principles  of  honour,  and  let  reason  say 
which  bears  the  marks  of  the  most  exalted  greatness.  Com- 
pare them,  and  let  reason  say  which  enjoys  the  most  calm 
serenity  of  mind  in  time,  and  which  is  likely  to  receive  the 
plaudit  of  his  Judge  in  immortality. 

GOD,  from  his  throne,  beholds  not  a  nobler  object  on  his 
footstool,  than  the  man  who  loves  his  enemies,  pities  their 
errors,  and  forgives  the  injuries  they  do  him.  This  is  in- 


deed  the  very  spirit  of  the  heavens.     It  is  the  image  of  his 
benignity,  whose  glory  fills  them. 

To  return  to  the  subject  before  us — Guilty,  absiird  and  rash, 
as  duelling  is,  it  has  its  advocates.  And  had  it  not  had  its 
advocates — had  not  a  strange  preponderance  of  opinion  been 
in  favour  of  it,  never,  O  lamentable  Hamilton  !  hadst  thou 
thus  fallen,  in  the  midst  of  thy  days,  and  before  thou  hadst 
reached  the  zenith  of  thy  glory  ! 

O  THAT  I  possessed  the  talent  of  eulogy,  and  that  I  might 
be  permitted  to  indulge  the  tenderness  of  friendship  in  pay- 
ing the  last  tribute  to  his  memory !  O  that  I  were  capable 
of  placing  this  great  man  before  you !  Could  I  do  this,  I 
should  furnish  you  with  an  argument,  the  most  practical, 
the  most  plain,  the  most  convincing,  except  that  drawn  from 
the  mandate  of  GOD,  that  was  ever  furnished  against  duel- 
ling, that  horrid  practice,  which  has  in  an  awful  moment, 
robbed  the  world  of  such  exalted  worth. 

BUT  I  cannot  do  this — I  can  only  hint  at  the  variety  and 
exuberance  of  his  excellence. 

THE  MAN,  on  whom  nature  seems  originally  to  have 
impressed  the  stamp  of  greatness — whose  genius  beamed 
from  the  retirement  of  collegiate  life,  with  a  radiance  which 
dazzled,  and  a  loveliness  which  charmed  the  eye  of  sages. 

THE  HERO,  called  from  his  sequestered  retreat,  whose 
first  appearance  in  the  field,  though  a  strippling,  conciliated 
the  esteem  of  Washington,  our  good  old  father.  Moving 
by  whose  side,  during  all  the  perils  of  the  revolution,  our 
young  Chieftain  was  a  contribute!*  to  the  veteran's  glory,  the 
guardian  of  his  person,  and  the  compartner  of  his  toils.  \ 

fe       .J- 


THE  CONQUEROR,  who,  sparing  of  human  blood, 
\vhen  victory  favoured,  stayed  the  uplifted  arm,  and  nobly 
said  to  the  vanquished  enemy,  "  LIVE  !  " 

THE  STATESMAN,  the  correctness  of  whose  princi- 
ples, and  the  strength  of  whose  mind,  are  inscribed  on  the 
records  of  congress,  and  on  the  annals  of  the  council  cham- 
ber; whose  genius  impressed  itself  upon  the  Constitution 
of  his  country ;  and  whose  memory,  the  government,  illus- 
trious fabric,  resting  on  this  basis,  will  perpetuate  while  it 
lasts :  and  shaken  by  the  violence  or"  party,  should  it  fall, 
which  may  heaven  avert,  his  prophetic  declarations  will  be 
found  inscribed  on  its  ruins. 

THE  COUNSELLOR,  who  was  at  once  the  pride  of  the 
bar  and  the  admiration  of  the  court- — whose  apprehensions 
were  quick  as  lightning,  and  whose  developement  of  truth 
was  luminous  as  its  path — whose  argument  no  change  of 
circumstances  could  embarrass — whose  knowledge  appear- 
ed intuitive  ;  and  who  by  a  single  glance,  and  with  as  much 
facility  as  the  eye  of  the  eagle  passes  over  the  landscape, 
surveyed  the  whole  field  of  controversy — saw  in  what  way 
truth  might  be  most  successfully  defended,  and  how  error 
must  be  approached.  And  who,  without  ever  stopping, 
ever  hesitating,  by  a  rapid  and  manly  march,  led  the  lis- 
tening judge  and  the  fascinated  juror,  step  by  step,  through 
a,  delightsome  region,  brightening  as  he  advanced,  till  his 
argument  rose  to  demonstration,  and  eloquence  was  render- 
ed useless  by  conviction. 

WHOSE  talents  were  employed  on  the  side  of  righteous- 
ness— whose  voice,  whether  in  the  council-chamber,  or  at 
the  bar  of  justice,  was  virtue's  consolation — At  whose  ap- 

R 


(120) 

proach  oppressed  humanity   felt  a  secret  rapture,  and  ther 
heart  of  injured  innocence  leapt  for  joy. 

WHERE  Hamilton  was — in  whatever  sphere  he  moved,  the 
friendless  had  a  friend,  the  fatherless  a  father,  and  the  poor 
mart,  though  unable  to  reward  his  kindness,  found  an  advo- 
cate. It  was  when  the  rich  oppressed  the  poor — -when  the 
powerful  menaced  the  defenceless — when  truth  was  disre- 
gard^d,  or  the  eternal  principles  of  justice  violated — it  was 
On  these  occasions,  that  he  exerted  all  his  strength — it  was 
on  these  occasions  that  he  sometimes  soared  so  high  and 
shone  with  a  radiance  so  transcendant,  I  had  almost  said, 
so  u  heavenly,  as  filled  those  around  him  with  awe,  and 
gave  to  him  the  force  and  authority  of  a  prophet." 

THE  PATRIOT,  whose  integrity  baffled  the  scrutiny  of 
inquisition — whose  manly  virtue  never  shaped  itself  to  cir- 
cumstances—who, always  great,  always  himself,  stood 
amidst  the  varying  tides  of  party,  frm,  like  the  rock,  which, 
far  from  land,  lifts  its  majestic  top  above  the  waves,  and 
remains  unshaken  by  the  storms  which  agitate  the  ocean. 

THE  FRIEND,  who  knew  no  guile — whose  bosom  was 
transparent  and  deep ;  in  the  bottom  of  whose  heart  was 
rooted  every  tender  and  sympathetic  virtue — whose  various 
worth  •pposing  parties  acknowledged  while  alive,  and  on 
whose  tomb  they  unite,  with  equal  sympathy  and  grief,  t® 
heap  their  honours. 

I  KNOW  he  had  his  failings.  I  see  on  the  picture  of  his 
life,  a  picture  rendered  awful  by  greatness,  and  luminous 

by  virtue,  some  dark  shades On  these 

let  the  tear  that  pities  human  weakness  fall :  on  these  let  the 
veil  which  covers  human  frailty  rest As 


a  hero,  as  a  statesman,  as  a  patriot,  he  lived  nobly :  and 
would  to  GOD  I  could  add,  he  nobiy  felL 

UNWILLING  to  admit  his  error  in  this  respect,  I  go  back 
to  the  period  of  discussion.  I  see  him  resisting  the  threat- 
ened interview.  I  imagine  myself  present  in  his  chamber. 
Various  reasons,  for  a  time,  seem  to  hold  his  determination 
in  arrest.  Various  and  moving  objects  pass  before  him, 
and  speak  a  dissuasive  language. 

His  country,  which  may  need  his  counsels  to  guide,  and 
his  arm  to  defend,  utters  her  veto.  The  partner  of  his 
youth,  already  covered  with  weeds,  and  whose  tears  flow 
down  into  her  bosom,  intercedes !  His_  babes,  stretching 
out  their  little  hands  and  pointing  to  a  weeping  mother,  with 
lisping  eloquence,  but  eloquence  which  reaches  a  parent's 
heart,  cry  out  u  Stay — stay — dear  papa,  and  live  for  us  !"  In 
the  mean  time  the  spectre  of  a  fallen  son,  pale  and  ghastly, 
approaches,  opens  his  bleeding  bosom,  and  as  the  harbinger 
of  death,  points  to  the  yawning  tomb,  an4  warns  a  hesitat- 
ing father  of  the  issue ) 

HE  pauses.  Reviews  these  sad  objects :  and  reasons  on 
the  subject.  I  admire  his  magnanimity.  I  approve  his 
reasoning,  and  I  wait  to  hear  him  reject  with  indignation 
the  murderous  proposition,  and  to  see  hiri}  spurn  from  his 
presence  the  presumptuous  bearer  of  it. 

BUT  I  wait  in  vain.  It  was  a  moment  in  which  his 
great  wisdom  forsook  him.  A  moment  in  which  Hamilton 
was  not  himself. 

HE  yielded  to  the  force  of  an  imperious  custom :  And 
yielding,  he  sacrificed  a  life  in  which  ail  had  an  interest— 


(  122) 

and  he  is  lost — lost  to  his  country — lost  to  his  family — -lost 
to  us. 

FOR  this act,  because  he  disclaimed  it, 

and  was  penitent,  I  forgive  him.  But  there  are  those  whom 
I  cannot  forgive. 

I  MEAN  not  his  antagonist ;  over  whose  erring  steps,  if 
there  be  tears  in  heaven,  a  pious  mother  looks  down  and 
weeps.  If  he  be  capable  of  feeling,  he  suffers  already  all 
that  humanity  can  suffer  :  Suffers,  and  wherever  he  may 
fly,  will  suffer,  with  the  poignant  recollection  of  having  tak- 
en the  life  of  one  who  was  too  magnanimous  in  return  to  at- 
tempt his  own.  Had  he  have  known  this,  it  must  have  pa- 
ralyzed his  arm,  while  it  pointed,  at  so  incorruptible  a  bosom, 
the  instrument  of  death.  Does  he  know  this  now  ?  his  heart, 
if  it  be  not  adamant,  must  soften — if  it  be  not  ice,  it  must 

melt But 

on  this  article  I  forbear.  Stained  with  blood  as  he  is,  if 
he  be  penitent,  I  forgive  him — and  if  he  be  not,  before 
these  altars,  where  all  of  us  appear  as  suppliants,  I  wish  not 
to  excite  your  vengeance,  but  rather,  in  behalf  of  an  object 
rendered  wretched  and  pitiable  by  crime,  to  wake  your  pray- 
ers. 

BUT  I  have  said,  and  I  repeat  it,  there  are  those  whom 
I  cannot  forgive* 

I  CANNOT  forgive  that  minister  at  the  altar,  who  has  hi- 
therto forborn  to  remonstrate  on  this  subject.  I  cannot  for- 
give that  public  prosecutor,  who,  intrusted  with  the  duty  of 
avenging  his  country's  wrongs,  has  seen  those  wrongs,  and 
taken  no  measures  to  avenge  them.  I  cannot  forgive  that 
judge  upon  the  bench,  or  that  governor  in  the  chair  of  state, 


(  123  ) 

who  has  lightly  passed  over  such  offences.  I  cannot  forgive 
the  public,  in  whose  opinion  the  duellist  finds  a  sanctuary. 
I  cannot  forgive  you,  my  brethren,  who,  till  this  late  hour, 
have  been  silent,  while  successive  murders  were  committed. 
No  ;  I  cannot  forgive  you,  that  you  have  not,  in  common 
with  the  freemen  of  this  state,  raised  your  voice  to  the 
powers  that  be,  and  loudly  and  explicitly  demanded  an  execu- 
tion of  your  laws.  Demanded  this  in  a  manner,  which  if 
it  did  not  reach  the  ear  of  government,  would  at  least  have 
reached  the  heavens,  and  plead  your  excuse  before  the  GOD 
that  filleth  them....in  whose  presence  as  I  stand,  I  should 
not  feel  myself  innocent  of  the  blood  that  crieth  against  us, 
had  I  been  silent.  But  I  have  not  been  silent.  Many  of 
you  who  hear  me,  are  my  witnesses — the  walls  of  yonder 
temple,  where  I  have  heretofore  addressed  you,  are  my 
witnesses,  how  freely  I  have  animadverted  on  tliis  subject, 
in  the  presence  both  of  those  who  have  violated  the  laws, 
and  of  those  whose  indispensable  duty  it  is  to  see  the  laws 
executed  on  those  who  violate  them. 

I  ENJOY  another  opportunity ;  and  would  to  GOD,  I  might 
be  permitted  to  approach  for  once  the  late  scene  of  death. 
Would  to  GOD,  I  could  there  assemble  on  the  one  side,  the 
disconsolate  mother  with  her  seven  fatherless  children — and 
on  the  other,  those  who  administer  the  justice  of  my  coun- 
try. Could  I  do  this,  I  would  point  them  to  these  sad  ob- 
jects. I  would  entreat  them,  by  the  agonies  of  bereaved 
fondness,  to  listen  to  the  widow's  heartfelt  groans  ;  to  mark 
the  orphans'  sighs  and  tears. — And  having  done  this,  I 
would  uncover  the  breathless  corpse  of  Hamilton — I  would 
lift  from  his  gaping  wound,  his  bloody  mantle — I  would  hold 
it  up  to  heaven  before  them,  and  I  would  ask,  in  the  name 
of  GOD,  I  would  ask,  whether  at  the  sight  of  it  they  felt  no 
compunction  ? 


(  124) 

You  will  ask,  perhaps,  what  can  be  done,  to  arrest  the 
progress  of  a  practice  which  has  yet  so  many  advocates  ?  I 
answer,  nothing-*-\f  it  be  the  deliberate  intention  to  do  no* 
thing.  Bat  if  otherwise,  much  is  within  our  power, 

LET,  then,  the  governor  see  that  the  laws  are  executed  j 
let  the  council  displace  the  man  who  offends  against  their 
majesty ;  let  courts  of  justice  frown  from  their  bar,  as  un- 
worthy to  appear  before  them,  the  murderer  and  his  accom- 
plices ;  let  the  people  declare  him  unworthy  of  their  confi- 
dence who  engages  in  such  sanguinary  contests  ; — let  this  be 
done,  and  should  life  still  be  taken  in  single  combat,  then 
the  governor,  the  council,  the  court,  the  people,  looking  up 
to  the  Avenger  of  sin,  may  say,  u  we  are  innocent — ;-we 
are  innocent." 

•  Do  you  ask  how  proof  can  be  obtained  ?  How  can  it  be 
avoided  ? — /The  parties  return,  hold  up  before  our  eyes  the 
instruments  of  death,  publish  to  the  world  the  circumstan- 
ces of  their  interview,  and  even,  with  an  air  of  insulting 
triumph,  boast  how  coolly,  and  deliberately  they  proceeded 
in  violating  one  of  the  most  sacred  laws  of  earth  and  hea« 
ven ! 

AH  !  ye  tragic  shores  of  Hoboken,  crimsoned  with  the 
richest  blood,  I  tremble  at  the  crimes  you  record  against 
lls — the  annual  register  of  murders  which  you  keep  and  send 
up  to  GOD  !  Place  of  inhuman  cruelty !  beyond  the  limits  of 
reason,  of  duty,  and  of  religion,  where  man  assumes  a 
more  barbarous  nature,  and  ceases  to  be  man.  What  poign- 
ant, lingering  sorrows  do  thy  lawless  combats  occasion  to 
surviving  relatives ! 

YE  who  have  hearts  of  pity — ye  who  have  experienced  the 


(125) 

anguish  of  dissolving  friendship — who  have  wept,  and  still 
weep  over  the  mouldering  ruins  of  departed  kindred,  ye  can 
ent^r  into  this  reflection. 

O  THOU  disconsolate  widow  !  robbed,  so  cruelly  robbed, 
and  in  so  short  a  time,  both  of  a  husband  and  a  son,  what 
must  be  the  plenitude  of  thy  sufferings  !  Could  we  approach 
thee,  gladly  would  we  drop  the  tear  of  sympathy,  and  pour 
into  thy  bleeding  bosom  the  balm  of  consolation  !  But  how 
could  we  comfort  her  whom  GOD  hath  not  comforted  ?  To 
his  throne,  let  us  lift  up  our  voice  and  weep.  O  GOD  !  if 
thou  art  still  the  widow's  husband,  and  the  father  of  the  fa- 
therless— if  in  the  fulness  of  thy  goodness  there  be  yet  mer- 
cies in  store  for  miserable  mortals,  pity,  O  pity  this  afflicted 
mother,  and  grant  that  her  hapless  orphans  may  find  a 
friend,  a  benefactor,  a  father,  in  THEE  ! 

ON  this  article  I  have  done :  and  may  GOD  add  his  bless- 
ing. 

BUT  I  have  still  a  claim  upon  your  patience.  I  cannot 
here  repress  my  feelings,  and  thus  let  pass  the  present  op- 
portunity  

How  are  the  mighty  fallen  .'  And,  regardless  as  we  are  of 
rulgar  deaths,  shall  not  the  fall  of  the  mighty  affect  us  ? 

A  SHORT  time  since,  and  he  who  is  the  occasion  of  our 
sorrows,  was  the  ornament  of  his  country.  He  stood  on 
an  eminence  ;  and  glory  covered  him.  From  that  eminence 
he  has  fallen — suddenly,  forever,  fallen.  His  intercourse 
with  the  living  world  is  now  ended ;  and  those  who  would 
hereafter  find  him,  must  seek  him  in  the  grave.  There, 
cold  and  lifeless,  is  the  heart  which  just  now  was  the  seat 


(  126) 

of  friendship.  There,  dim  and  sightless  is  the  eye,  whose 
radiant  and  enlivening  orb  beamed  with  intelligence ;  and 
there,  closed  for  ever,  are  those  lips,  on  whose  persuasive 
accents  we  have  so  often,  and  so  lately,  hung  with  transport ! 

FROM  the  darkness  which  rests  upon  his  tomb,  there  pro- 
ceeds, methinks,  a  light  in  which  it  is  clearly  seen  that  those 
gaudy  objects  which  men  pursue,  are  only  phantoms.  In 
this  light  how  dimly  shines  the  splendour  of  victory — how 
humble  appears  the  majesty  of  grandeur !  The  bubble  which 
seemed  to  have  so  much  solidity,  has  burst  j  and  we  again, 
see  that  all  below  the  sun  is  vanity 

TRUE,  the  funeral  eulogy  has  been  pronounced ;  the 
sad  and  solemn  procession  has  moved  ;  the  badge  of  mourn- 
ing has  already  been  decreed,  and  presently  the  sculptured 
marble  will  lift  up  its  front,  proud  to  perpetuate  the  name 
of  HAMILTON*  and  rehearse  to  the  passing  traveller  his 
virtues. 

JUST  tributes*of  respect  f  And  to  the  living  useful.  But 
to  him,  mouldering  in  his  narrow  and  humble  habitation, 
what  are  they  ? — How  vain !  how  unavailing  ! 

APPROACH,  and  behold — while  I  lift  from  his  sepulchre 
its  covering ! — Ye  admirers  of  his  greatness  j  ye  emulous  of 
his  talents  and  his  fame,  approach,  and  behold  him  now. 
How  pale ! — How  silent ! — No  martial  bands  admire  the 
adriotness  of  his  movements  :  No  fascinated  throng  weep—- 
and melt — and  tremble,  at  his  eloquence! — Amazing  change ! 
A  shroud  !  a  coffin  !  a  narrow,  subterraneous  cabin  !  This  is 
all  that  now  remains  of  Hamilton  !  And  is  ^his  all  that  re- 
mains of  htm  ? — During  a  life  so  trans  her}*",  what  lasting 
monument  then  can  our  fondest  hopes  erect  ? 


(127) 

MY  brethren  !  we  stand  on  the  borders  of:an 
which  is  swallowing  up  all  things  human.  And  is  there, 
amidst  this  universal  wreck,  nothing  stable,  nothing  abid- 
ing, nothing  immortal,  on  which  poor,  frail,  dying  man,  can 


ASK  the  hero,  ask  the  statesman,  whose  wisdom  you 
have  been  accustomed  to  revere,  and  he  will  tell  you.  He 
will  tell  you,  did  I  say  ?  He  has  already  told  you,  from  his 
death-bed,  and  his  illumined  spirit  still  whispers  from  the 
heavens,  with  well  known  eloquence,  the  solemn  admonition  : 

"  MORTALS  !  hastening  to  the  tomb,  and  once  the  com- 
panions of  my  pilgrimage,  take  warning  and  avoid  my  er- 
rors —  Cultivate  the  virtues  I  have  recommended  —  Choose 
the  Saviour  I  have  chosen  —  Live  disinterestedly  —  Live  for 
immortality  ;  and  would  you  rescue  any  thing  from  final  dis- 
solution, lay  it  up  in  GOD." 

THUS  speaks,  methinks,  our  deceased  benefactor,  and 
thus  he  acted  during  his  last  sad  hours.  To  the  exclusion 
of  every  other  concern,  religion  now  claims  ah1  his  thoughts. 

JESUS  !  JESUS,  is  now  his  only  hope.  The  friends  of  JE- 
SUS are  his  friends  —  the  ministers  of  the  altar  his  compa- 
nions. While  these  intercede,  he  listens  in  awful  silence,  or 
in  profound  submission  whispers  his  assent. 

SENSIBLE,  deeply  sensible  of  his  sins,  he  pleads  no  merit 
of  his  own.  He  repairs  to  the  mercy  seat,  and  there  pours 
out  his  penitential  sorrows  —  there  he  solicits  pardon. 

HEAVEN,  it  should  seem,  heard  and  pitied  the  suppliant's 
cries.  Disburdened  of  his  sorrows,  and  looking  up  to  GOD, 


C  12*  > 

he  exclaims,  *  Grace — rich  grace."  "  I  have,"'  said  hey 
clasping  his  dying  hands,  and  with  a  faltering,  tongue,- 
"  /  have  a  tender  reliance  on  the  mercy  of  God  in  Christ"  In- 
token  of  this  reliance,  and  as  an  expression  of  his  faith,  he 
receives  the  holy  sacrament;  and  having  done  this,  his 
mind  becomes  tranquil  and  serene.  Thus  he  remains, 
thoughtful  indeed,  but  unruffled  to  the  last,  and  meets  death 
with  an  air  of  dignified  composure,  and  with  an  eye  direct- 
ed to  the  heavens. 

THIS  last  act,  more  than  any  other,  sheds  glory  on  his 
character.  Every  thing  else  death  effaces.  Religion  alone 
abides  with  him  on  his  death-bed.  He  dies  a  Christian. 
This  is  all  which  can  be  enrolled  of  him  among  the  archives 
of  eternity.  This  is.  all  that  can  make  his  name  great  in 
heaven. 

LET  not  the  sneering  infidel  persuade  you  that  this  last 
act  of  homage  to  the  Saviour,  resulted  from  an  enfeebled 
state  of  mental  faculties,  or  from  perturbation  occasioned  by 
the  near  approach  of  death.  No  j  his  opinions  concerning 
the  Divine  Mission  of  Jestis  Christ,  and  the  validity  of  the 
holy  scriptures,  had  long  been  settled,  and  settled  after  labo- 
rious investigation  and  extensive  and  deep  research.  These 
opinions  were  not  concealed.  I  knew  them  myself.  Some 
of  you  who  hear  me,  knew  them ;  and  had  his  life  been 
spared,  it  was  his  determination  to  have  published  them  to 
the  world,  together  with  the  facts  and  reasons  on  which 
they  were  founded. 

AT  a  time  when  scepticism,  shallow  and  superficial  in- 
deed, but  depraved  and  malignant,  is  breathing  forth  its 
pestilential  vapour,  and  polluting  by  its  unhallowed  touch, 
every  thing  divine  and  sacred ;  it  is  consoling  to  a  devout 


(  129  ) 

mind  to  reflect,  that  the  great,  and  the  wise,  and  the  good 
of  all  ages ;  those  superior  geniuses,  whose  splendid  talents 
have  elevated  them  almost  above  mortality,  and  placed  them 
next  in  order  to  angelic  natures — Yes,  it  is  consoling  to  a 
devout  mind  to  reflect,  that  while  dwarfish  infidelity  lifts 
up  its  deformed  head,  and  mocks,  these  illustrious  person* 
ages,  though  living  in  different  ages — inhabiting  different 
countries-— nurtured  in  different  schools — destined  to  differ* 
ent  pursuits — and  differing  on  various  subjects — should  ail, 
as  if  touched  with  an  impulse  from  heaven,  agree  to  vindi- 
cate the  sacredness  of  Revelation,  and  present  with  one 
accord,  their  learning,  their  talents  and  their  virtue,  on  the 
Gospel  Altar,  as  an  offering  to  Emanuel, 

THIS  is  not  exaggeration.  Who  was  it,  that,  overleaping 
the  narrow  bounds  which  had  hitherto  been  set  to  the  hu- 
man mind,  ranged  abroad  through  the  immensity  of  space, 
discovered  and  illustrated  those  laws  by  which  the  Deity 
unites,  binds,  and  governs  all  things  ?  Who  was  it,  soaring 
into  the  sublime  of  astronomic  science,  numbered  the  stars 
of  heaven,  measured  their  spheres,  and  called  them  by  their 
names  ?  It  was  NEWTON.  But  Newton  was  a  Christian. 
Newton,  great  as  he  was,  received  instruction  from  the 
lips,  and  laid  his  honours  at  the  feet  of  Jesus, 

WHO  was  it,  that  developed  the  hidden  combination,  the 
component  parts  of  bodies  ?  Who  was  it,  dissected  the  ani- 
mal, examined  the  flower,  penetrated  the  earth,  and  ranged 
the  extent  of  organic  nature  ?  It  was  BOYLE.  But  Boyle 
was  a  Christian, 

WHO  was  it,  that  lifted  the  veil  which  had  for  ages  covert 
ed  the  intellectual  world,  analyzed  the  human  mind,  defined 
its  powers,  and  reduced  its  operations  to  certain  and  fixed 
laws  ?  It  was  LOCKE.  But  Locke  too  was  a  Christian. 


(  130  ) 

WriAT  more  shall  I  say  ?  For  time  would  fail  me,  to 
speak  of  Hale,  learned  in  the  law  ;  of  Addtson,  admired  in 
the  schools ;  of  Milton,  celebrated  among  the  poets ;  and 
of  Washington,  immortal  in  the  field  and  the  cabinet. — To 
this  catalogue  of  professing  Christians,  from  among,  if  I 
may  speak  so,  a  higher  order  of  beings,  may  now  be  added 
the  name  of  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON— A  name 
which  raises  in  the  mind  the  idea  of  whatever  is  great,  what- 
ever is  splendid,  whatever  is  illustrious  in  human  nature  j 
and  which  is  now  added  to  a  catalogue  which  might  be 
lengthened — and  lengthened — and  lengthened,  with  the 
names  of  illustrious  characters,  whose  lives  have  blessed  so- 
ciety, and  whose  works  form  a  COLUMN  high  as  heaven — 
a  column  of  learning,  of,  wisdom,  and  of  greatness,  which 
will  stand  to  future  ages,  an  eternal  monument  of  the  tran- 
scendant  talents  of  the  advocates  of  Christianity,  when  every 
fugitive  leaf,  from  the  pen  of  the  canting  infidel  witlings  of 
the  day,  shall  be  swept  by  the  tide  of  time  from  the  annals 
of  the  world,  and  buried  with  the  names  of  their  authors  in 
oblivion. 

To  conclude.     How  are  the  mighty  fallen  I  Fallen  before 
the  desolating  hand  of  death.     Alas  !  the  ruins  of  the  tomb. 

.  i  . The  ruins  of  the  to wib  are  en  emblem 

of  the  ruins  of  the  world.  When  not  an  individual,  but  an 
universe,  already  marred  by  sin  and  hastening  to  dissolution, 
shall  agonize  and  die !  Directing  your  thoughts  from  the 
one,  fix  them  for  a  moment  on  the  other.  Anticipate  the 
concluding  scene,  the  final  catastrophe  of  nature  :  when 
the  sign  of  the  Son  of  man  shall  be  seen  in  heaven ;  when 
the  son  of  man  himself  shall  appear  in  the  glory  of  his  Fa- 
ther, and  send  forth  judgment  unto  victory — The  fiery  de- 
solation envelopes  towns,  palaces,  and  fortresses  ;  the  hea- 
vens pass  away  !  The  earth  melts  !  and  all  those  magnificent 


(  131  ) 

productions  of  art,  which  ages,  heaped  on  ages,  have  rear- 
ed up,  are  in  one  awful  day  reduced  to  ashes  ! 

AGAINST  the  ruins  of  that  day,  as  well  as  the  ruins  of  the 
tomb  which  precede  it,  the  gospel,  in  the  cross  of  its  great 
High  Priest,  offers  you  all  a  sanctuary  ;  a  sanctuary  secure 
and  abiding ;  a  sanctuary,  which  no  lapse  of  time,  nor 
change  of  circumstances,  can  destroy.  No  ;  neither  life  nor 
death — No  ;  neither  principalities  nor  powers. 

EVERY  thing  else  is  fugitive ;  every  thing  else  is  muta- 
ble ;  every  thing  else  will  fail  you.  But  this,  the  citadel  of 
the  Christian's  hopes,  will  never  fail  you.  Its  base  is  ada- 
mant. It  is  cemented  with  the  richest  blood.  The  ran- 
somed of  the  Lord  crowd  its  portals.  Enbosomed  in  the 
dust  which  it  incloses,  the  bodies  of  the  redeemed  "  rest 
in  hope."  On  its  top  dwells  the  Church  of  the  first  born, 
who  in  delightful  response  with  the  angels  of  light,  chant 
redeeming  love.  Against  this  Citadel  the  tempest  beats, 
and  around  it  the  storm  rages,  and  spends  its  force  in  vain. 
Immortal  in  its  nature,  and  incapable  of  change,  it  stands, 
and  stands  firm,  amidst  the  ruins  of  a  mouldering  world,  and 
endures  forever. 

THITHER  fly,  ye  prisoners  of  hope ! — that  when  earth, 
air,  elements,  shall  have  passed  away,  secure  of  existence 
and  felicity,  you  may  join  with  saints  in  glory,  to  perpe- 
tuate the  song  which  lingered  on  the  faultering  tongue  of 
HAMILTON,  "  Grace— rich  Grace." 

GOD  grant  us  this  honour :  Then  shall  the  measure  of 
our  joy  be  full,  and  to  his  name  shall  be  the  glory  in  Christ* 

— AMEN. 


(  132  ) 

Extract  of  a  letter  from  a  respectable  gentleman  in  Virginia^ 
dated  16th  July. 

u  WITHIN  3  day  or  two  past  a  report  has  pervaded  this 
part  of  the  country,  of  the  death  of  Gen.  Hamilton,  in  a 
duel  with  Col  Burr.  The  report,  it  is  said,  is  too  well  au- 
thenticated to  be  doubted,  though  as  yet,  I  am  uninformed 
of  the  particulars.— Alas  !  and  was  this  to  be  the  fate  of  a 
man,  who  would  have  been  an  honour  to  any  country  upon 
earth  ?  Execrated  be  the  custom  in  general,  and  execrated 
be  the  hand  in  particular,  that  could  aim  the  means  of  death, 
under  sanction  of  this  custom,  at  one,  who  when  he  fell,  left 
not  his  equal,  take  him  all  in  all,  upon  the  surface  of  our  globe? 
Alas  !  Illustrious  shade,  farewell !  Our  country's  loss  in  you 
is  irreparable.  Your  name,  and  well  known  worth  and  ta- 
lents, operated  strongly  in  favour  to  our  country,  even  upon 
the  ambitious  designs  of  him,  who  grasps  in  imagination, 
the  empire  of  the  world.  He  knew  that  your  sagacity  and 
vigilance  could  not  be  deceived,  and  that  in  times  of  diffi- 
culty and  danger,  when  they  should  be  apparent,  ijou,  like 
Washington,  would  become  the  bulwark  of  our  safety-— that 
all  true  American  hearts  in  such  a  crisis,  forgetting  their 
former  resentments  and  delusions,  would  be  united.  But 
now  whither  are  we  to  turn  in  such  an  event  ?  Execrated  be 
the  hand  that  has  robbed  our  country  of  this  transcendant 
v/orth  !  But,  alas !  it  can  never  be  recalled  !" 


ri  HE  two  letters  from  which  the  following  extracts  are 
r,ow  made,  were  received  soon  after  their  respective  dates. 
They  have  not  been  printed  before,  because,  as  they 
were  not  designed  for  the  public  eye,  they  contained  some 


(  133  ) 

passage*  which  I  thought  had  better  be  suppressed  j  but 
they  are  so  eloquently  written  that  I  cannot  refuse  myself 
the  satisfaction  of  presenting  at  least  some  passages  from 
them. 

Extract  of  a  letter  from  a  gentleman,  In  Burlington,  (N.  J.) 
dated  July  16,  1804. 

"  No  country  ever  deplored  a  greater  man,  nor  did  ever 
the  tears  of  friendship  embalm  a  memory  so  pregnant  with* 
worth  and  honour.  Alas  !  how  unavailing  is  all  that  admi- 
ration and  gratitude^  which,  too  late,  would  fain  reanimate 
him  from  the  grave!  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  %* 

"  His  life  has  long  been  sought  for,  as  the  last  sacrifice 
to  malignant  and  criminal  passions  j-  yet,  even  in  his  death, 
he  presents  an  image  of  sublime  heroism  and  virtue,  terri- 
fying to  guilty  minds.  What,  indeed,  must  be  the  over- 
whelming brightness  of  that  character,  which  forces  the 
Very  assassins  of  his  reputation  and  life,  to  retract  their 
calumnies,  and  wear  the  ensigns  of  mourning !  This  event 
removes  out  of  the  way,  perhaps,  the  only  remaining  obsta- 
cle to  the  domineering  projects  of  Virginia.  Two  men  only, 
lived  in  this  degenerate  country,  whose  opinions  and  energy 
retarded  the  march  of  cunning  ambition — They  are  gone — > 
fortunate,  perhaps,  after  lives  of  patriotism  and  unceasing 
Usefulness,  not  quite  to  have  out-lived  the  liberties  of  their 
country.  I  much  regret  that  it  never  fell  to  my  lot  to  have 
even  seen  this  truly  wonderful  man :  his  qualities  were  such, 
however,  as  to  attract  the  warmest  personal  attachments. — 
What  American,  but  in  his  admiration  of  the  Hero  and 
Statesman,  will  mingle  sighs  for  Hatrulton  himself? — ..but 
ihen,  pleasing  consolation ! 


(134) 

He's  gone  to  Virtue's  rest ! 
"  With  all  his  country's  wishes  blest. 
When  Spring,  with  dewy  fingers  cold, 
Returns  to  deck  his  hallowed  mould  ; 
She  there  shall  dress  a  sweeter  sod 
Than  Fancy's  feet  have  ever  trod. 
By  fairy  hands  his  knell  is  rung  ; 
By  forms  unseen  his  dirge  is  sung ; 
There  Honour  comes,  a  pilgrim  grey, 
To  bless  the  turf  that  wraps  his  clay  ; 
And  Freedom  shall  awhile  repair» 
To  dwell  a  weeping  Hermit  there." 

COLLINS. 

"  I  CAN  only  add,  that  here,  (as  I  suppose  every  where 
else)  grief  clouds  every  countenance." 


Extract  of  another  from  the  same,  dated  July  2O. 

"  I  CANNOT  disburthen  my  heart  enough  to  be  submissive 
to  this  punishment  of  God  upon  an  ungrateful  land :  He  that 
ought  to  have  been  the  pride  and  favourite  of  his  country, 
as  he  was  its  soul  and  saviour ;  was  first  smitten  with  the 
death  of  ingratitude,  and  then  butchered  by  one  of  your  *  *  * 
*•  *.  I  am  impatient  and  feverish  with  the  subject.  Adieu." 


TRIBUTE  OF  RESPECT. 

AT  a  special  Meeting  of  the  St.  Andrew's  Society,  of  the 
City  of  Albany,  held  at  the  Tontine  Coffee-House,  July 
26th,  1804: 

Resolved  unanimously,  THAT  in  token  of  the  sincere  grief 
of  the  Society  for  the  premature  and  untimely  death  of  Ge- 


neral  Alexander  t  Hamilton,  and  the  high  sense  they  enter- 
tain of  his  distinguished  services  to  his  country,  as  a  Soldier 
and  a  Statesman ;  of  the  eminent  virtues  which  adorned  him 
as  a  man,  a  friend,  and  a  citizen,  and  the  high  respect  in 
which  he  has  justly  been  held  by  our  Sister  Society  of  the 
City  of  New-York^  of  which  he  was  one  of  its  first  mem- 
bers ;  that  they,  at  every  meeting  of  the  Society  for  six 
months,  shall  appear  with  an  appropriate  badge  of  mourning. 

Resolved,  THAT  the  Rev.  John  M'Donald,  Mr.  Pearson, 
Mr.  Ramsay,  and  Dr.  M'Clelland,  be  a  committee  to  pre- 
pare a  respectful  message  of  condolence  to  General  Philip 
Schuyler,  the  venerable  and  afflicted  father-in-law  of  our 
dear  deceased  brother,  expressive  of  the  sympathy  of  this 
Society  with  him  and  his  family,  in  their  irreparable  loss,  and 
that  they  convey  the  same  in  the  most  delicate  manner  to 
the  General. 


GENERAL  PHILIP  SCHUYLER. 

SIR, 

THE  President  and  Members  of  the  St.  Andrew's  Society 
of  the  City  of  Albany,  beg  leave  with  mingled  sensations  of 
grief  and  indignation,  to  tender  you  their  sincere  and  respect- 
ful condolence  on  the  untimely  death  of  Alexander  Hamil- 
ton, a  distinguished  son  of  your  family,  an  early  member 
of  the  American  St.  Andrew  Societies^  and  the  ornament  and 
pride  of  the  American  people. 

You,  Sir,  have  been  long  acquainted  with  his  singular 
merits,  and  with  the  amiable  qualities  of  his  heart.  You 
have  never  ceased,  with  candour  and  generosity,  to  appreci- 
ate and  respect  them.  But  he  has  fallen,  cruelly  fallen,  at 
a  time  when  your  age  and  infirmities  rendered  his  corres- 

T 


(  136  ) 

pondence  and  occasional  society  peculiarly  desirable  and! 
soothing ;  and  at  a  time  when  his  excellent  wife  and  his  ris- 
ing family,  in  various  views,  demanded  his  protection,  his 
counsel,  and  exertion ;  at  a  time  when  the  situation  of  our 
country  seems  to  require  his  vigilance  and  his  warning. 
He  has  fallen  by  the  hand  of  a  man,  whom  his  gentle  and 
generous  nature  could  only  injure  by  eclipsing  him,  or  by 
conscientiously  attempting  to  counteract  or  defeat  measures 
which  he  deemed  dangerous  to  the  community.  His  fall, 
though  premature,  will  seal  his  own  unspotted  fame,  and 
an  odium  on  his  implacable  opponent,  which  time  will  not  re- 
move.' 

THE  fame  of  Hamilton  will  need  no  protecting  shield, 
though  thousands,  were  it  necessary,  would  rejoice  in  the 
office :  It  will  continue  to  spread  with  increasing  glory  be- 
yond the  limits,  and  probably  beyond  the  duration  of  the 
government  which  he  eminently  contributed  to  establish. 

COULD  this  Society,  could  our  country  in  general,  devise 
means  for  mitigating  the  grief  of  a  brave  soldier,  of  a  faith- 
ful and  indefatigable  statesman,  under  your  present  unex- 
pected and  heavy  calamity,  they  would  not  be  withheld. 
But  in  the  bosom  of  an  honourable  and  independent  retire- 
ment, surrounded  with  a  flourishing  and  affectionate  family, 
and  blessed  with  the  resources  of  an  active,  capacious,  and 
cultivated  mind,  we  trust  you  will  be  enabled  to  support 
with  dignity,  what  you  can  never  cease  to  deplore. 

M  AY  propitious  Heaven  shed  peculiar  rays  of  comfort 
on  an  useful  and  laborious  life,  qualify  you  for  the  protec- 
tion and  consolation  of  the  afflicted  relatives  of  the  honour- 
able dead,  and  grant  you  a  late,  but  joyful  admission  to  the 
abodes  of  peace,  and  the  society  of  the  good* 


(137) 

SIGNED   by  order,  and  in    behalf  of  the   Society,  at  a 
Special  Meeting,  the  26th  July,  1804. 

JOHN  M'DONALD, 
GEORGE  RAMSAY, 
GEORGE  PEARSON, 
WM.  MCCLELLAND, 

Committee, 


ALBANY,  July  27. 
GENTLEMEN, 

MY  warmest  and  unfeigned  acknowledgments  are  due  to 
the  President,  and  the  members  of  the  St.  Andrew's  Socie^ 
ty,  for  the  delicate  and  feeling  manner  in  which  they  have 
condoled  with  me,  on  the  irreparable  loss  I  have  sustained 
in  the  death  of  a  son,  who  had  endeared  himself  to  me  by 
the  most  tender  solicitude  :  who  was  the  kindest  and  most 
affectionate  husband  to  my  dear  and  distressed  daughter : 
who,  as  a  father,  unremittingly  inculcated  into  the  tender 
minds  of  his  children,  that  virtue  which  marked  his  life,  and 
that  love  of  their  creator  wrhom  he  adored, 

UNDER  the  pressure  of  so  severe  a  calamity,  the  honour 
paid  by  the  Society  to  the  memory  of  the  deceased,  the  hu- 
mane attempt  to  console  and  mitigate  the  heart-rending;  dis- 
tress of  an  aged  and  feeble  parent,  are  not  only  soothing, 
but  will,  with  resignation  to  the  divine  dispensation,  impart 
a  ray  of  comfort  to  my  wounded  bosom. 

PERMIT  me,  Gentlemen,  through  you,  to  reciprocate 
with  the  utmost  cordiality,  those  affectionate  wishes  which 
have  evidently  emanated  from  the  hearts  of  the  Society,  and 
which  it  has  pleased  them  so  strongly  to  express  for  me  and 


(  138  ) 

my  family — And  do  you,  gentlemen,  be  pleased  to  accept  of 
my  best  acknowledgments  for  the  marked  and  polite  manner 
in  which  you  have  conveyed  the  sense  of  the  Society,  on 

this  mournful  event. 

^ 

I  am,  Gentlemen,  very  respectfully, 

Your  obliged  and  obedient  servant, 

PH:  SCHUYLER. 

To  the  Rev.  John  McDonald,  Messrs.  Ramsay, 
Pearson,  and  McClelland. 


THE  UTICA  PATRIOT. 

AT  a  numerous  and  respectable  meeting  of  the  inhabitants 
of  Whitestown  and  the  vicinity,  holden  at  the  Hotel  in 
Utica,on  the  24th  of  July,  1804,  the  following  resolutions 
were  unanimously  adopted : 

THIS  Meeting  having  heard,  with  inexpressible  sorrow, 
of  the  death  of  Gen.  HAMILTON,  and  being  desirous  of  pay- 
ing a  tribute  of  respect  to  the  rare  union  of  great  virtues  and 
transcendent  talents,  which  have  exalted  and  adorned  his 
'  character ;  and  believing  that  in  the  death  of  this  great  and 
good  man,  our  country  has  lost  one  of  its  greatest  benefac- 
tors, and  the  world  one  of  its  brightest  ornaments  : 

Resolved  Unanimously,  THAT  it  be  recommended  to  the 
inhabitants  of  Whitestown  and  its  vicinity,  to  set  apart 
Thursday  the  26th  inst.  as  a  day  of  public  mourning,  for  this 
melancholy  and  important  event ;  and  that  there  be  a  gene- 
ral suspension  of  business  on  that  day  : 

I 

THAT  minute  guns  be  fired  during  the  morning,  under 
the  direction  of  Capt.  Kirkland,  of  the  Artillery  : 


(  139) 

AND,  that  Mr.  J.  H.  Lothrop  be  requested  to  deliver  an 
Address  suited  to  the  occasion,  at  12  o'clock  on  that  day,  at 
the  new  Church  in  White sborough,  where  our  fellow-citi- 
zens are  requested  to  attend. 

Resolved,  THAT  Mr.  Jonas  Platt,  Mr.  J.  Van  Rensselaer, 
and  Mr.  Gerrit  G.  Lansing,  be  a  committee  to  carry  the 
foregoing  resolutions  into  effect. 

Resolved,  THAT  it  be  recommended  to  our  fellow-citizens 
of  Whitestown,  to  wear  crape  on  the  left  arm  as  mourning, 
during  thirty  days. 

Resolved,  THAT  the  proceedings  of  this  meeting,  signed 
by  the  chairman  and  secretary,  be  published  in  the  next  Pa- 
triot and  Columbian  Gazette. 

B.  WALKER,  Chairman. 

T.  SKINNER,  Secretary. 

Whitesborough,   Thursday,  July  26. 

IN  pursuance  of  the  foregoing  resolutions,  all  business  be- 
ing suspended,  minute  guns  were  fired  during  the  morning 
from  an  adjacent  eminence ;  and  the  tolling  of  the  village 
bell  announced  the  death  of  our  beloved  HAMILTON. 

AT  12  o'clock  great  numbers  of  all  classes  of  citizens  as- 
sembled, and  a  procession  was  formed  in  the  following  or- 
der, viz. 

Sheriff  Brodhead  and  his  Deputies, 

Citizens, 

Physicians, 

Students  of  law, 

Gentlemen  of  the  Bar, 

Magistrates, 

Orator, 

Committee  of  Arrangement. 


(  140  ) 

THE  procession  then  moved  in  solemn  silence  to  the  new 
Church,  where  an  elegant  and  appropriate  Address  was  de-, 
livered  by  John  H.  Lothrop,  Esq.  to  a  large  and  afflicted 
audience. 

THE  public  expressions  of  sorrow  and  respect  every  where 
exhibited,  show  that  the  character  of  HAMILTON  is  now 
appreciated  as  it  deserves  :  Posterity,  we  know,  will  take 
care  of  his  fame. 

A  CITIZEN. 


THE  RECORDER  OF  THE  TIMES.   (^Democratic. J 

HAMILTON  is  no  more  I....A  main  pillar  of  the  state  has 
fallen ;  not  by  the  giant  arm  of  a  Samson,  but  by  the  per- 
severing malice  of  the  ruthless,  the  weak,  and  intriguing 
Saul....The  most  distant  parts  of  our  country  have  felt  the 
shock. 

HAMILTON  was  virtuous,  eloquent,  and  brave.  Envy  her- 
self drooped  at  the  lustre  of  his  virtues  ;  his  opponents  were 
melted  by  his  eloquence,  and  his  enemies  confounded  by  his 
bravery.  In  justice  he  was  an  Aristides  ;  in  eloquence  a 
Cicero,  and  an  Achilles  in  war.  An  opportunity  would 
have  enabled  him  to  have  astonished  the  world,  by  the 
splendour  of  his  military  achievements.  But  he  has  been 
snatched  from  his  country  in  the  prime  of  life,  and  has  left 
us  nothing  but  the  remembrance  of  his  greatness.  The 
day  which  terminated  Jus  career,  annihilated  a  star  of  the 
first  magnitude. 


GENERAL  HAMILTON. 

•"  THE   Corporation  and  Citizens  of  Burlington,  New- 
Jersey,  are  respectfully  invited  to   attend  at  the   Town- 


(141  ) 

House,  to-morrow  evening,  at  7  o'clock,  for  the  purpose  of 
uniting  in  some  public  expression  of  their  respect  for  the 
memory  of  General  Hamilton. 

JAMES  STERLING,  Mayor. 
Friday,  20th  July,  1804. 

IN  pursuance  of  this  request,  the  citizens  having  assem- 
bled, appointed  the  Mayor,  Chairman,  and  Mr.  M'llvaine, 
the  Recorder,  Secretary. 

MR.  GRIFFITH  introduced  the  melancholy  subject  in 
these  terms.... 

A  LIFE  which  was  only  devoted  to  Honour  and  its  Coun- 
try, is  no  longer  ours. 

IN  the  meridian  of  his  days...of  his  usefulness... and  of  his 
fame... Hamilton  has  descended  to  the  tomb ! 

WHO  can  look  back,  upon  the  public  services,  and  exalt- 
ed virtues  of  the  deceased,  without  exclaiaiing  in  the  an- 
guish of  despair..."  Is  he,  too,  numbered  among  the  silent 
dead?" 

YES,  the  martial  son  of  Washington,  who  shared  with  him 
the  toils  and  dangers  of  a  war  for  liberty,  (O  pious  hope  ! ) 
is  united  to  him  in  the  realms  of  eternal  peace. 

THAT  luminous  and  expanded  mind,  which  embraced  all 
knowledge,  and  was  applied  to  the  utmost  good  of  his  fel- 
low-men...is  fled  to  the  spirit  which  gave  it. 

THOSE  pure  and  tender  affections,  which  imparted  to  so- 
cial intercourse  all  that  could  attract  and  delight,  have  dis- 
appeared. 


(  1*2) 

THAT  eloquence,  on  which  a  listening  Senate  hung,  is  for 
ever  silent.  Yet  these  shall  never  be  forgotten. 

His  memory  will  only  cease  to  inspire  and  to  charm,  when 
Americans  cease  to  honour  and  love  the  courage  which 
achieved  their  independence,  and  the  wisdom  which  cement- 
ed their  Union* 

4* 

WE  are  assembled  for  the  generous  purpose  of  uniting  in 
the  performance  of  some  feeble  expression  of  our  gratitude, 
our  admiration,  and  our  grief.  Alas !  in  our  hearts  only 
must  be  sought  the  real  extent  of  those  feelings  ;  I  forbear 
to  speak ;  it  is  enough  now  to  iveep  over  the  man,  whom 
History,  his  Country,  and  the  World,  shall  delight  to  rank 
among  the  Constellations  of  Genius,  Virtue,  and  Valour." 

THE  following  resolution  was  immediately  adopted : 

""  AT  an  Assembly  of  the  Citizens  of  Burlington,  in  the 
Town-House,  on  Saturday  the  21st  of  July,  1804 — it  was 
unanimously  agreed  thus  publicly  to  express  the  deep  af- 
fliction which  the  premature  death  of  General  Alexan- 
der Hamilton  imparts  to  every  bosom  ;  to  acknowledge 
the  debt  of  gratitude,  which  was  due  to  him  for  a  continued 
series  of  inestimable  services  in  war  and  peace  ;  to  avow 
a  conscious  pride  in  the  character  of  an  American  Citizen, 
who  lived  to  defend,  to  bless,  and  to  adorn  his  Country ; 
and  lastly,  to  deplore  the  tyranny  of  that  custom,  which  has 
suddenly  borne  away  domestic  peace,  and  left  a  nation  in 
tears." 

PUBLISHED  at  the  special  request  of  the  citizens  : 

JAMES  STERLING,  Chairman. 
JOS.  M'lLVAINE,  Secretary. 

END  OF  XO.  III. 


(  143) 

i$  A  COLLECTION, 

N".   IV. 

^ 

PROM  A  BOSTON  PAPER,  JULY  26. 

Tribute  of  respect  to  the  Memory  of  General  ALEXAN- 
DER HAMILTON. 

THIS  day  the  Committee  of  Arrangement  respectfully 
give  notice,  that  the  Eulogy  on  the  late  Gen.  Alexander 
Hamilton,  will  be  pronounced  at  the  Chapel  Church,  at 
twelve  o'clock. 

THOSE  of  their  fellow-citizens,  who  are  disposed  to  unite 
in  paying  this  public  respect  to  the  merits  and  illustrious  ser- 
vices of  the  deceased,  are  requested  to  assemble  at  a  quar- 
ter before  twelve  o'clock^  on  the  State-House  floor;  and 
from  thence  accompany  the  Orator  to  the  Church. 

By  order,          J.  WARREN,  Chairman. 
Thursday,  July  26,  1804. 

ATTENTION ! 

THE  Independent  Cadets  will  assemble  at  Faneuil-Hall, 
this  morning  at  nine  o'clock,  in  Uniform  complete,  with 
white  Gaiters.  The  roll  will  be  called  at  half  past  nine  pre- 
cisely. 

Wm.  SHIMMIN,  O.  S. 


(144) 

Arrangements  at  the  Chapel. 

THE  public  are  respectfully  informed,  that  all  the  Galle* 
ries,  and  a  part  of  the  Wall  Pews  on  the  lower  floor,  in  the 
Chapel,  will  be  exclusively  appropriated  to  the  Ladies...The 
six  first  Pews  on  the  Broad  Aile,  will  be  reserved  for  the 
Military  Escort,  and  all  the  remainder  of  the  Body  Pewa 
©n  the  lower  floor,  for  those  who  compose  the  procession- 

THE  forming  of  the  procession,  at  a  quarter  before  12 
o'clock,  will  be  announced  by  the  tolling  of  the  Chapel  bell, 
which  will  cease  as  soon  as  the  procession  has  entered  the 
Church.  By  desire  of  the  Committee  of  Arrangements^ 

JOSEPH  MAY. 

LAST  TRIBUTE  OF  RESPECt. 

IN  willing  conformity  to  the  resolutions  of  the  respecta- 
ble body  of  citizens,  who  assembled  on  Friday  Evening  last, 
we  are  happy  in  learning  that  the  meeting  this  day,  at  the 
New  State-House,  will  be  general ;  that  no  party  distinc- 
tions will  appear  j  and  that  our  citizens^  universally,  will 
adopt  the  recommended  Badge  of  Mourning^  on  the  occa- 
sion. The  acknowledged  pre-eminent  services  and  talents  of 
the  illustrious  deceased,  would  have  called  for  these  marks 
of  respect  for  his  memory,  and  regret  for  their  cessation,  if 
the  example  of  our  cities  of  New- York,  Philadelphia,  Wil- 
mington, Baltimore,  &c.  had  not  benignantly  beckoned  us  to 
follow.  Foremost  in  every  good  work,  the  citizens  of  Bos- 
ton, in  the  grateful  homage  they  are  about  to  pay,  will  still 
evince  to  the  world,  that  on  great  occasions,  they  ever  rise 
superior  to  party  impulse;  that  they  will  recognize  and  rever- 
ence merit,  services,  and  patriotism,  wherever  they  may- 
be found  :  and  that  in  native  :~  k,  endence,  and  genuine 
liberality,  they  are  not  inferior  in  any  degree,  to  the  best 
citizens  of  any  other  portion  of  the  continent.  Those  who 


(145) 

loved  and  revered  Washington,  must  respect  the  memory 
of  him  whom  Washington  respected 'as  a  Friend,  a  Confidant^ 
a  Counsellor..** Those  who  esteemed  tried  Patriotism  as  one 
of  the  most  exalted  virtues,  must  weep  over  the  bier  of  the 
Patriot  "  without  reproach". ...and  those  who  knew  the  dan- 
gers of  the  "  tented feld?  when  Independence  was  the  stake 
contended  for,  and  are  not  unwilling  to  acknowledge  servi- 
ces which  were  faithful  to  the  end,  will  not  decline  to  strew 
roses  over  the  grave  of  the  Soldier-Citizen,  and  Citizen-Sol- 
dier^ 

THE  masters  of  such  vessels  as  are  lying  at  the  wharves, 
as  well  as  those  at  anchor  in  the  harbour,  will  show  their  re- 
spect to  departed  merit,  by  hoisting  their  colours  half  mast, 
during  the  solemnities  of  the  day. 

SAME  PAPER,  JULY  27. 

TRIBUTE  TO  MERIT. 

YESTERDAY  was  the  day  assigned  for  public  demonstra^ 
tion  of  the  esteem  and  respect  of  the  citizens  of  Boston,  for 
the  merits  and  illustrious  services  of  the  late  Gen.  Hamilton. 
At  half  past  12  o'clock  a  procession  was  formed  at  the 
State-House.  It  consisted  of  the  Committee  of  Arrange- 
ments, Orator,  Chaplain,  His  Honour  the  Lieut.  Governor, 
Judges  of  the  Supreme  Court,  foreign  Consuls,  Strangers 
of  distinction,  and  citizens  ;  and  included  near  1000  per- 
sons. The  procession  moved  through  Winter  and  Marlbo- 
rough-streets  and  a  part  of  Cornhill  and  Court-street,  to  the 
Chapel  Church,  escorted  by  the  independent  Cadets,  under 
the  command  of  Major  Pierce.  The  Throne  of  Grace  was 
addressed  in  an  appropriate  prayer  by  the  Rev.  Chaplain  of 
the  House  of  Representatives,  and  an  Anthem  suited  to  the 
occasion  was  sung,  after  which  an  Eulogy  on  the  Character 


(146) 

of  the  deceased  Patriot  and  Statesman,  was  pronounced  by 
the  Hon.  Harrison  G.  Otis,  Esq. 

THE  Hon.  Mr.  King,  and  Judge  Benson,  of  New- York, 
and  the  Hon.  Mr.  Rudedge,  of  S.  Carolina,  were  among 
the  auditors  at  the  Chapel  yesterday. 

MOST  of  the  public  offices  were  closed  ;  the  flags  of 
the  shipping  in  the  harbour  were  suspended  at  half-mast 
through  the  day ;  and  during  the  moving  of  the  procession, 
minute  guns  were  fired  from  Fort  Independence. 


SALEM  PAPER. 

YESTERDAY  were  performed  at  Boston,  the  public  and  so- 
lemn ceremonies  of  respect  to  the  memory  of  Gen.  Hamil- 
ton. At  12  o'clock  a  very  long  procession  composed  of  the 
first  characters  of  the  metropolis  and  the  vicinity,  moved 
from  the  State-House  to  the  Chapel  Church,  escorted  by 
the  Independent  Cadets  ;  where,  after  a  prayer  by  the  Rev. 
Mr.  Kirkland,  in  a  very  elevated  strain  of  devotion,  and 
an  appropriate  hymn,  the  Honourable  Mr.  Otis  pronounced 
an  Eulogy  on  the  character  of  the  deceased.  Of  this  com- 
position, which  was  delivered  with  the  greatest  effect,  we 
can  give  but  a  faint  outline.  After  a  pathetic  exordium,  (in 
which  it  was  observed  with  felicity  that  "  the  sod  which  was 
still  wet  with  our  tears  for  Washington,  was  now  to  be  dis- 
turbed to  receive  the  friend  of  Washington. ...the  disciple 
that  leaned  upon  his  bosom,")  Mr.  Otis  presented  a  rapid 
but  glowing  sketch  of  the  life  of  General  Hamilton.  WTith 
this  were  necessarily  intervolved  all  the  great  events  of  our 
national  history,  from  the  commencement  of  the  revolution. 
A  forcible  appeal  was  made  to  the  gratitude  of  the  nation, 


(  W) 

when  the  audience  were  reminded  that  in  addition  to  the 
many  subordinate  public  measures  of  which  Hamilton  was  the 
author,  he  first  proclaimed  the  necessity  of  an  amendment  of 
the  old  confederation  j  and,  that  the  address  to  the  people  for 
calling  a  General  Convention  was  the  production  of  his  pen. 
The  unwearied  patriotism  which  he  displayed  in  promoting 
the  adoption  of  the  Constitution,  and  the  immortal  work  writ- 
ten with  that  view,  were  next  glanced  at.  The  simplicity  of  his 
habits,  and  his  scanty  but  honest  earnings  on  his  quitting 
public  employments,  were  very  happily  contrasted  with  the 
rapacity  and  avarice  of  the  Generals  and  Financiers  of  the 
French  Republic.  Those  unprincipled  plunderers  were  cal- 
led upon  to  disgorge  their  ill-gotten  wealth — to  quit  their 
gorgeous  palaces,  and  with  shame  to  humble  themselves 
before  the  simple  tomb  of  Hamilton. ...His  errors  (for  he  was 
human)  were  also  touched  upon — but  they  were  touched 
with  the  hand  of  a  friend.. ..The  delineation  of  his  character 
was  executed  with  the  skill  of  a  master....Just  praise,  with- 
out the  disgusting  extravagance  of  flattery  (but  indeed  what 
could  be  flattery  of  Hamilton  ?)  was  bestowed  with  a  gene- 
rous liberality.  In  short,  the  performance  in  the  whole  was 
a  most  honourable  testimonial  of  the  distinguished  virtues 
and  resplendent  talents  of  the  departed  patriot. 

This  sketch  (which  we  made  from  memory,  and  under 
the  disadvantage  of  an  unfavourable  situation  in  the  church) 
will,  we  are  sensible,  convey  a  very  inadequate  idea  of  the 
merit  of  the  composition  :  But  we  shall  the  less  regret  it,  as 
we  trust  the  public  will  soon  be  gratified  by  the  perusal  of 
the  Eulogy  itself. 


ALBANY  GAZETTE. 

IN  compliance  with  the  request  of  the  citizens  of  Albany, 
discourses  were  yesterday  delivered  in  several  of  the  church- 


(  148  ) 

cs  of  this  city,  on  the  untimely  and  ever  to  be  lamented 
death  of  General  HAMILTON.  The  concourse  of  peo- 
ple in  the  North  Church,  was  the  most  respectable  and  nu- 
merous ever  before  assembled  on  any  occasion  in  this  city, 
the  death  of  General  Washington  only  excepted :  The  Rev. 
Mr.  Nott  led  their  devotions....and  in  a  discourse  the  most 
luminous  and  impressive,  he  contemplated,  reviewed,  and 
made  an  appropriate  application  of  that  sublime  passage  of 
Holy  Writ :  "  The  Beauty  of  Israel  is  slain  upon  the  high 
places.... How  are  the  mighty  fallen .' " 


FROM  THE  TRENTON  FEDERALIST. 

IK  the  early  part  of  last  week,  the  man  who  has  covered 
our  country  with  mourning,  Col.  Aaron  Burr,  passed  through 
the  state  of  Jersey,  on  his  way  to  Philadelphia,  where,  we 
are  informed,  he  has  had  the  hardihood  to  make  a  public 
appearance  by  walking  in  the  open  streets   in  the  face  of 
day.    From  Amboy  he  was  carried  by  some  friend  to  Cran- 
berry, and  thence  conveyed  in  a  light-waggon,  crossing  the 
Delaware  at  Lamberton  ferry,  to  Bristol,  in  Pennsylvania.... 
Stopping  at  a  tavern  a  few  miles  beyond  the  Delaware,  he 
was  recognized  by  the  honest  landlord,  who,  unapprized 
of  the  desire  of  concealment,  called  him  by  his  proper  name. 
On  this  he  requested  the  landlord  no  more  to  make   use  of 
his  name  while  he  staid  at  the  house !  These  things  we  are 
enabled  to  state  as  unquestionably  true,  in  consequence  of  the 
correctness  of  the  source  from  which  we  received  them.  How 
degrading  to  the  majesty  of  our  government,  that  its  second 
officer  should  thus  be  under  the  real  or  fancied  necessity  of  tra- 
velling with  studied  privacy,  through  bye-roads,  and  in  unu- 
sual vehicles.     It  becomes  the  man,  however,  who  has  ex- 
tinguished the  bright  constellation  of  genius  and  worth,  him- 
self to  walk  in  darkness  and  obscurity... .It  manifests  some 


(149) 

deference  to  public  opinion,  and  the  energy  of  the  laws. 
Whether  the  arm  of  justice  would  have  been  raised  to  stop 
him  in  his  course,  we  know  not....Nor  know  we  whether 
any  measures  will  be  taken  to  wash  out  the  precious  blood 
which  stains  the  shores  of  Jersey.  The  path  of  duty  we 
apprehend  is  plain.. ..It  is  well  known  by  him  to  whom  is 
intrusted  the  dignity  of  the  state,  and  if  we  are  to  rely  on 
general  promises  of  official  faithfulness,  he  will  follow  it. 
The  honour  of  New-Jersey  demands  that  its  shores  should 
no  longer  be  made  places  of  butchery  for  the  inhabitants  of 
New- York  and  Pennsylvania. 


THE  BALANCE. 

[THE  heart  of  Croswell  vents  its  grief  in  the  following 
pathetic  strain :] 

A  Tribute:..Fno'M.  the  editor  of  this  paper,  something 
more  is  due  to  the  departed  HAMILTON,  than  common 
panegyric  and  general  encomium.  This,  a  whole  nation  is 
bound  to  bestow- — this,  not  a  citizen  of  America  seems  dis- 
posed to  withhold*  But  to  me  he  once  rendered  unequalled 
service,  apart  from  that  rendered  to  his  country  generally. 
In  my  defence,  and  in  defence  of  the  American  press,  he 
once  exerted  his  unrivalled  eloquence.  In  my  cause,  this 
greatest  of  men  made  his  mightiest  effort — an  effort,  which 
might  have  palsied  the  up-lifted  hand  of  power — an  effort, 
which  might  have  carried  terror  to  the  bosom  of  a  tyrant. 
For  this  service,  voluntarily  rendered^  I  owed  him  a  debt  of 
gratitude  which  never  could  be  cancelled — never  diminish- 
ed. But,  by  offering  my  feeble  aid  to  the  support  of  princi- 
ples which  he  advocated,  I  hoped,  at  least,  to  show  my 
sense  of  the  obligation  under  which  I  was  laid,  by  his  dis- 


interested  exertions — Alas  !  he  is  gone — and  I  have  only 
returned  him  the  professions  of  my  gratitude.  But  "  his 
fame  is  left " — dear  as  my  blood,  my  life  shall  be  devoted  to  its 
protection. 


NEW-ENGLAND  REPUBLICAN. 

SEVERAL  editorial  paragraphs,  and  articles  of  news,  are 
omitted  this  week  to  give  place  to  the  correspondence  which 
preceded  and  terminated  in  the  death  of  General  ALEX- 
ANDER  HAMILTON.     His   funeral  rites,    performed 
on  Saturday  the  14th  inst.  with  every  possible  solemnity,  do 
much  honour  to  the  citizens  of  New-York.     All  know  the 
cause  of  his  death,  and  all  will  bear  it  in  mind.     Let  the  citi- 
zens of  these  States  for  ever  remember,  that  his  life  was  devot- 
ed to  their  service.    Let  them  remember,  that  it  was  through 
anxiety  for  their  welfare,  that  he  gave   the  offence  which 
[was  the  cause  of]  his  death.     He  saw  himself  under  the 
necessity  of  either  permitting  them  to  be  deceived  by  profes- 
sions which  he  suspected  to  be  false ;  or,  in  cautioning  them 
against  their  danger,  of  giving  offence  to  their  enemies. 
He  did  not  hesitate  for  a  moment.    He  cannot  be  suspected 
of  being  influenced  by  party  animosity,  nor  of  seeking  pro- 
motion on  the  ruin  of  his  adversary.    He  was  then  a  private 
citizen,  and  his  determination  to  remain  so  was  unchanged. 
Seeing  with  concern  the  intrigues  of  men  whose  views  he 
couid  not  justify,  in  the  frankness  of  his  heart  he  uttered  his 
fears  j  and  for  this  generous   indiscretion  he  lost  his  life. 
Yet  the  cause  of  his  death  must  not  be  sought  for  here  [only]  ; 
but  in  that  pride  which  could  not  brook  a  superior ;  that  envy 
which  bickened  at  his  fame  ;  that  ambition  which  maddened 
with  impediments  j  that  spirit  of  revenge  which  counted  not 
the  price  of  its  gratification.     The  hand  raised  against  him, 


moved  by  a  heart  which  never  melted  at  his  eloquence  ; 
and  directed  by  an  eye  which  lowered  upon  his  excellence. 
Hamilton  did  not  die  by  the  hand  of  a  Brutus ;  he  com- 
manded no  power  but  the  mild  influence  of  his  character ; 
he  headed  no  army  but  the  pacific  legions  of  his  virtues.  He 
had  never  subjugated  his  country;  nor,  by  his  approach  to 
absolute  power,  invited  the  offer  of  a  crown.  Yet  was  he 
branded  a  Caesar.  His  death  was  not  the  consequence  of -a 
recent  offence  :  it  had  long  been  desired,  and  a  pretext  long 
sought  for.  When  Washington  invited  him  to  his  confi- 
dence ;  when  he  conferred  upon  him  marks  of  his  esteem  as 
he  delighted  to  do  ;  the  heart  which  moved  the  hand  against 
him,  sunk  in  envy.  Alas !  that  private  hatred  should  be 
able  to  deprive  the  world  of  such  a  mind  as  his  ;  such  a  rare 
versatility  of  talents  ;  such  a  group  of  mild  virtues.  Those 
who  had  before  condemned  the  practice  of  duelling,  as  in- 
consistent with  religion  and  the  laws  of  the  land,  will  now 
have  an  additional  reason  for  their  disapprobation.  It  has 
deprived  his  family  of  a  husband  and  father  ;  his  friends  of 
a  cheerful  companion  ;  his  profession  of  its  proudest  boast ; 
society  of  a  benevolent  and  active  member ;  his  country  of 
her  bravest  champion,  and  the  world  of  an  honest  man.  All 
this  mischief  was  the  work  of  private  revenge ! 


NEWPORT  MERCURY, 

As  the  public  appear  to  be  highly  interested  in  the  melan- 
choly death  of  that  eminently  distinguished  Patriot  and  Sol- 
dier, Gen.  Alexander  Hamilton,  we  have  appropriated  a  large 
proportion  of  this  day's  paper  to  the  publication  of  those  ar- 
rangements made  in  New- York  for  his  solemn  interment, 
and  for  the  general  expression  of  that  sorrow  which  appears 
to  have  pervaded  all  ranks  and  parties  in  the  city.  Want 


of  room  prevents  our  publishing  the  correspondence  between 
Gen.  Hamilton  and  Col.  Burr,  before  next  week,  when 
the  public  shall  be  gratified,  by  a  perusal  of  all  the  commu- 
nications on  this  subject,  by  which  it  will  very  evidently  ap- 
pear, that  there  existed  in  the  mind  of  Col.  Burr,  a  pre- 
determined hostility  and  inveteracy  of  design,  which  no 
language  could  assuage...no  honourable  concession  could  ap- 
pease. 

ALTHOUGH  we  explicitly  condemn  the  barbarous  and  un- 
christian custom  of  duelling,  so  shamefully  prevalent  in  our 
country,  yet  it  affords  us  much  satisfaction,  under  this 
great  national  calamity,  to  ascertain  the  pleasing  fact....that 
Gen.  Hamilton,  with  extreme  reluctance  [only],  under  what 
he  honestly  conceived,  imperious  necessity«..was  induced  to 
wave  his  conscientious  scruples  against  this  unequal  mode  of 
terminating  disputes ;  and  that,  such  was  his  conduct,  dur- 
ing the  last  solemn  scene  of  his  life,  as  to  induce  a  belief,, 
that  he  died  at  peace  with  the  world,  and  reconciled  in  sa- 
$red  love  to  his  God. 

,   '  «  'Tis  just  to  give  applause,  where 'tis  deserv'd; 

His  virtues,  sure,  have  stood  the  test  of  fortune  ; 
Like  purest  gold,  that,,  tortured  in  the  furnace, 
Comes  out  more  bright,  and  brings  forth  all  its  weight.'* 
"  How  does  the  lustre  of  this  great  man's  actions, 
Through  the  dark  cloud  of  ills  that  covered  him, 
Break  forth,  and  shine  with  more  triumphant  brightness." 


THE  CONNECTICUT  GAZETTE. 

AT  Philadelphia,  Boston,  and  other  places,  we  perceive* 
that  tributes  of  great  respect  are  paid  to  the  memory  of  the 
beloved  and  lamented  Hamilton.  An  eulogy  is  to  be  <le- 


livered  by  Harrison  G.  Otis,  Esq.  at  Boston,  and  the  citi- 
zens are  recommended  to  wear  crape  for  thirty  days....The 
citizens  of  Philadelphia  assembled  and  passed  several  re- 
solves honorary  to  the  deceased,  predicated  on  the  follow- 
ing...." That  a  national  tribute  of  respect  to  the  memory  of 
departed  heroes  and  statesmen,  not  only  excites  an  emula- 
tion of  their  glorious  example,  but  constitutes  the  purest  re- 
ward of  their  toils  and  their  virtues  ;  and  that  such  a  tribute 
is  justly  due  to  the  memory  of  Alexander  Hamilton."  The 
bells  were  tolled,  the  colours  of  the  vessels  were  displayed 
half-mast,  and  the  citizens  were  requested  to  wear  crape  OB 
the  left  arm  for  thirty  days, 

As  General  Hamilton,  in  point  of  national  services,  stood 
among  the  first  of  those  worthies  who  achieved  our  Inde- 
pendence, and  contributed  probably  more  than  any  other 
man,  to  the  adoption  of  our  excellent  constitution,  his  death 
at  any  time  would  have  caused  a  general  grief ;  but  the  pre- 
mature and  tragic  manner  in  which  he  was  torn  from  us, 
has  justly  excited  a  national  feeling  of  sorrow  and  indigna- 
tion, honourable  to  our  national  character,  and  to  the  me* 
mory  of  the  deceased.  The  loss  of  so  much  talents  and  in- 
tegrity at  this  time,  is  no  common  deprivation.  Every  citi- 
zen has  lost  a  friend,  and  every  honourable  man  a  brother. 

CONSULTING  the  sentiments  and  feeling  of  the  public;  we 
have  appropiated  a  considerable  portion  of  our  paper  to  this 
interesting  subject,  and  doubt  not  the  approbation  of  our 
readers. 


THE  NORFOLK  LEDGER. 

Let  us  Mourn  ///....THE  good,  the  wise,  the  patriotic 
ALEXANDER  HAMILTON  ;  whose  whole  life  was  devoted  to 
the  service  of  man;  from  the  exercise  of  whose  talents,  this 


(  154) 

country  has  derived  benefits  of  the  most  incalculable  magni- 
tude :  His  Arm  was  exerted  for  our  Independence  :....His 
Science  in  framing  our  Constitution  :....His  Eloquence  in 
obtaining  its  adoption  :....His  Knowledge  in  originating  our 
Finance.  And  those  blessings  which  he  had  so  eminently 
contributed  to  obtain,  he  has  ever  shown  himself  the  most 
forward  to  defend  and  insure.  This  great  and  virtuous 
man,  who  was  the  unchanging  friend  of  his  country,  who 
was  the  invaluable  friend  of  Washington,  died,  on  Thurs- 
day, July  12,  18O4,  at  the  house  of  William  Bayard,  Esq. 
at  Greenwich,  in  consequence  of  a  wound  received  from 
the  Vice-President  of  the  United  States,.  His  memory  wiU 
be  embalmed  with  the  tears  of  a  nation. 

SAME    PAPER. 

OUR  countiy  has  never  felt  so  severely  the  dreadful  effects 
of  Duelling,  as  it  is  likely  to  experience  in  that  which  we 
are  about  to  announce.  *i 

GENERAL  HAMILTON,  a  man  deservedly  dear  to  every 
worthy  citizen  of  the  United  States  ;  a  man  from  whom  this 
country  has  derived  benefits  more  extensive  and  important 
than  have  been  conferred  upon  her  by  any  other  man  now 
living ;  a  man,  who,  viewed  in  the  various  relations  of  scho-. 
lar,  lawyer,  soldier,  statesman,  and  citizen,  shone  with 
unrivalled  splendour ;  a  man  whose  loss  must  fill  every  vir- 
tuous mind  with  the  deepest  regret;  was,  on  the  llth  inst, 
at  Hoboken  in  Jersey,  wounded  mortally,  in  a  duel  witly 
Col.  Burr,  Vicc-President  of  the  United  States. 


PORTSMOUTH     ORACLE. 

Deep  lamentation.... Dim,  at  New- York,  on  the  afternoon 
of  Thursday  last,     Gen.   Alexander  Hamilton,  of  a  wound 


(  155) 

which  he  received  on  the  morning  of  the  preceeding  day,  in 
a  duel  with  Col.  Burr.  Never  was  a  death  more  sincerely 
and  justly  lamented  j  and  his  loss  will  be  sensibly  felt 
throughout  the  United  States.  In  him  were  united  the 
most  splendid  talents  and  the  strictest  political  integrity. 
There  was  no  man  more  universally  beloved  by  those  who 
knew  him,  and  in  whom  such  unbounded  confidence  was 
placed. 

WHEN  the  'feelings  of  the  public  shall,  in  some  measure, 
have  subsided,  we  shall  probably  present  to  our  readers  a 
correct  statement  of  the  circumstances  which  produced  this 
melancholy  event,  together  with  a  tribute  of  respect  to  the 
unequalled  talents  and  virtues  of  that  great  and  illustrious 
character. 


ALBANY  CENTINEL. 

A  NUMEROUS  and  respectable  meeting  of  merchants  and 
other  citizens  of  Albany,  convened  at  the  City-Hall  of  said 
city,  on  Friday  last  at  6  o'clock  in  the  evening,  pursuant  to 
public  notice,  in  order  "  to  unite  in  expressing  their  sorrow 
and  regret  at  the  loss  our  country  has  suffered  in  the  death 
of  its  first  citizen,  Alexander  Hamilton  :" 

THIS  meeting  being  opened,  the  letter  from  the  Right 
Rev*  Bishop  Moore  to  the  Editor  of  the  Evening  Post  was 
read,  by  particular  request,  and  received  with  a  solemn  at- 
tention, and  highly  grateful  sensations  ;  when  the  following 
determinations  were  adopted  : 

"WE,  the  merchants  and  other  citizens  of  Albany,  impres- 
sed with  a  just  sense  of  the  merit  attached  to  the  character  of 


C  156) 

Alexander  Hamilton,  by  his  distinguished  military  services 
during  the  late  Revolutionary  War....his  eminent  display  of 
talents  and  services  as  a,  statesman,  and  his  exalted  princi- 
ples of  honour  and  integrity  ;  do  feel  a  deep  sense  of  sor- 
row and  regret  at  the  untimely  death  of  that  truly  great  man; 
and  we  do  unanimously  agree  to  wear  a  band  of  crape 
around  the  arm  for  the  space  of  six  weeks,  as  a  testimonial 
of  veneration  and  esteem  for  departed  merit,  and  as  a  badge 
of  mourning  for  the  loss  experienced  by  our  country  in  the 
death  of  so  invaluable  a  citizen. 

AND  we  do  further  agree,  that  the  Clergy  of  the  several 
denominations  in  this  city,  be  waited  upon,  in  behalf  of  this 
meeting,  and  requested  to  preach  a  Sermon  in  their  respec- 
tive churches,  appropriate  to  the  solemn  occasion." 

AT  a  meeting  of  the  Gentlemen  of  the  Bar  of  this  city,  it 
was  unanimously  agreed  to  wear  crape  for  six  weeks  as  a  tes- 
timonial of  their  veneration  and  esteem  for  the  talents  and 
virtues  of  General  Hamilton,  and  of  the  deep  regret  with 
which  they  deplore  his  death. 

At  a  meeting  of  the  Students  at  Law  of  the  city  of  Albany, 
on  the  20th  of  July,  1804,  on  the  occasion  of  the  death  of 
the  late  Alexander  Hamilton — ELIJAH  THOMAS  in  the 
Chair  : 

"  Resolved  unanimously ,  THAT  this  meeting  entertain  the 
highest  veneration  for  the  character,  and  a  lively  and  sacred 
respect  for  the  memory  of  the  late  Alexander  Hamilton ; 
and  that  in  testimony  of  their  sorrow  for  his  untimely 
death,  they  will  wear  crape  on  the  left  arm  for  six  weeks." 

TEUNIS  VAN  VECHTEN,  Sec'ry. 


(  157) 

LANSINGBURGH  GAZETTE. 

How  sleep  the  Brave  !  they  sink  to  rest, 
By  all  their  country's  wishes  blest ! 

Tribute  of  Respect....Tnv  citizens  of  Lansingburgh  and 
Waterford,  having  received  the  melancholy  intelligence  of 
the  death  of  Gen.  Alexander  Hamilton,  met  at  Johnson's 
Hotel  on  Wednesday  last,  in  order  to  adopt  some  suitable 
method  of  expressing  their  deep  regret  for  his  loss,  and  the 
high  esteem  and  veneration  which  they  entertain  for  his 
character.... 

CORNELIUS  LANSING,  Esq.  in  the  chair;  and  John  T. 
Close,  secretary. 


AFTER  some  prefatory  remarks  by  David  Allen,  Esq.  in 
which  the  virtues  of  the  deceased  General  were  feelingly 
and  impressively  portrayed,  the  following  resolutions  were 
unanimously  adopted.... 

"  Resolved,  THAT  this  meeting  do  participate  with  their 
fellow-citizens  elsewhere,  in  a  due  sense  of  the  irreparable 
loss  this  state,  and  the  United  States,  have  sustained  in  the 
death  of  Gen.  Alexander  Hamilton ;  whose  unrivalled  ta- 
lents, distinguished  patriotism,  eminent  services,  and  unsul- 
lied honour,  rendered  him  the  ornament  of  his  country. 

Resolved  also,  THAT  as  a  testimonial  of  their  respect  to 
his  memory,  they  will  wear  a  crape  on  the  left  arm  for  the 
space  of  thirty  days. 

Resolved  also,  THAT  a  committee  be  appointed  to  wait  OH 
the  Rev.  Samuel  Blatchford,  Pastor  of  the  united  congre- 
gations of  Lansingburgh  and  Waterford,  and  request  him 


(   158  ) 

to  deliver  a  Sermon  appropriate  to  the  mournful  occasion, 
on  Sunday  next ;  and  that  Elijah  Janes,  Moses  Scott,  and 
David  Allen,  Esqrs.  be  that  committee." 

JOHN  T.  CLOSE,  Secretary. 


NORTHERN   BUDGET. 

AT  a  general  meeting  of  the  inhabitants  of  the  village  of 
Troy,  at  Titus'  Inn,  on  the  evening  of  the  17th  July,  1804 : 

"  Resolved  unanimously,  THAT  the  death  of  General  Alex- 
ander Hamilton,  whose  unrivalled  talents  and  unsullied  in- 
tegrity have  exalted  him  above  the  reach  of  Eulogium,  is  an 
event  to  be  deplored  by  all  who  admire  intelligence^  or  ve- 
nerate worth. 

2.  THAT,  as  a  testimony  of  the  regret  felt  by  this  meet- 
ing for  the  loss  of  a  fellow-citizen  so  amiable  and  illustrious, 
and  whose  death  afflicts  America  and  Humanity,  they  will 
wear  crape  on  the  left  arm  for  thirty  days. 

3.  THAT  a  Committee,  composed  of  N.  Schuyler,  Wm. 
M.  Bliss,  and  J.  Osborne,  Esqrs.  wait  on  the  Rev.  Jonas  Coe, 
and  request  him  to  deliver  a  Discourse,  on  the  next  Sab- 
bath, adapted  to  this  solemn  occasion." 

DERICK  LANE,  Chairman. 
JEREMIAH  OSBORNE,  Sec*ry. 

AGREEABLY  to  the  request  contained  in  the  above  reso- 
lution, Mr.  Coe  delivered,  on  Sunday  afternoon,  a  Discourse 
well  adapted  to  the  melancholy  occasion,  from  2.  Samuel,  3d 
chap,  and  part  of  the  34th  verse — As  a  man  falleth  before 
wicked  men,  sofalkst  thou.  And  all  the  people  wept  for  him. 


(  159) 

The  gloom  depicted  on  the  countenances  of  a  very  numerous 
audience,  testiiied  the  general  regret  which  was  excited  by 
the  loss  of  a  citizen  so  eminently  useful  and  honorary  to  our 
country. 


THE  BEE.     (Democratic.} 

THE  death  of  General  Hamilton  has  given  his  political 
adversaries,  the  republicans,  an  opportunity  of  displaying  a 
liberality  and  magnanimity  we  in  vain  look  for  to  the  federal- 
ists. Laying  aside  the  animosity  entertained  against  his 
political  principles,  and  regarding  only  his  unparalleled  ta- 
lents and  accomplishments,  the  public  bodies  who  have  taken 
up  the  subject,  though  composed  of  republican  and  federal 
members,  have  unanimously  joined  in  paying  the  tribute  of 
respect  to  his  memory.  But  eminent  abilities  and  inte- 
grity are  not  the  peculiar  characteristics  of  contending  par- 
ties ;  and  when  so  great  a  man  as  Alexander  Hamilton  is 
suddenly  taken  off  the  stage  of  public  action,  we  should 

"  Let  the  good  they  do  live  after  them." 


TESTIMONY  OF  RESPECT. 

AT  a  meeting  of  the  inhabitants  of  the  village  of  Allen- 
town,  in  the  state  of  New  Jersey,  and  its  vicinity,  agreeably 
to  public  notice,  for  the  purpose  of  mutual  sympathy  and 
condolence,  under  the  calamity  which  their  country  sustains 
in  the  distressing  and  untimely  death  of  her  admired  and 
beloved  fellow-citizen,  General  Alexander  Hamilton  ;  and 
for  the  purpose  also  of  uniting  in  their  humble  but  sincere- 
and  respectful  tribute  of  admiration  and  gratitude,  so  justly 
due  to  his  memory,  his  pre-eminent  talents,  his  great  and  im- 
portant services  as  a  citizen  and  soldier,  and  his  many  and 

T 


(  160) 

distinguished  virtues — Captain  James  Bruere  was  chosea 
Chairman,  and  James  H.lmlay,  Secretary,  when  the  follow- 
ing resolutions  were  unanimously  adopted : 

1st.  Resolved,  THAT  the  great  and  distinguished  services 
and  talents,  the  many  and  eminent  virtues  of  the  late  Ge- 
neral Alexander  Hamilton,  have  a  just  claim  to  the  grateful 
acknowledgement,  the  high  veneration,  and  the  everlasting 
remembrance  and  esteem,  of  his  fellow-citizens. 

2d.  THAT  however  questionable  may  be  the  correctness 
of  the  judgment  of  the  illustrious  deceased,  in  acceding  to 
the  interview  which  led  to  his  afflictive  and  premature 
death,  we  cannot  but  admire  the  purity  of  his  motives  and 
the  magnanimity  of  his  conduct....and  it  is  with  regret  at  a 
catastrophe  so  sad  and  disastrous,  the  manner  whereof  adds 
accumulated  wo  to  the  bitterness  of  grief,  we  find  ourselves 
constrained  to  declare,  that  there  appears  no  cause  for  the 
like  admiration  of  the  conduct  of  his  adversary....nor  any 
circumstances  connected  with  that  conduct  which  in  any 
degree  alleviate  our  sorrow,  or  palliate  so  ruthless  and  vindic- 
tive a  measure* 

3d.  THAT  in  this  afflicting  dispensation  of  Providence, 
under  which  our  country  now  mourns,  in  taking  from  us 
our  second  Father,  General  Alexander  Hamilton,  the  intre- 
pid son  and  companion  of  our  beloved  and  venerated  Wash" 
tngtori)  in  all  the  toils  and  dangers  of  the  revolutionary  war, 
and  his  faithful  and  confidential  friend  and  counsel  in  the 
organization  and  administration  of  the  general  government, 
we  acknowledge  the  goodness  of  Heaven  in  so  far  prolong- 
ing his  life  as  to  have  afforded  him  the  opportunity  to  de- 
clare his  unequivocal  disapprobation  of  the  barbarous  prac- 
tice of  duelling....and  withal  to  seal  and  confirm,  with  his  dy- 


C  »<a  ) 

tng  breath,  his  belief  in  the  essential  doctrines  of  our  Holy  Reli* 
gion.... thereby  enabling  him,  to  his  other  excellencies  of 
character,  to  add  the  exalted  character  of  a  Christian*  So 
that  as  he  was  in  life,  ambitious  only  of  doing  goo.d,  and  pro- 
moting the  true  and  .substantial  interests  of  his  country,  in  his 
death  it  has  been  his  distinguished  fortune  and  felicity 
alike  to  subserve  this  important  and  desirable  object.  For 
himself  he  had  lived  enough... .to  honour  and  glory.  For 
his  country....if  her  wishes  and  prayers  had  prevailed,  he 
had  ever  lived,  while  superior  talents,  inflexible  integrity, 
and  distinguished  virtue,  are  estimable  in  society....nor  had 
he  fallen  by  the  ruthless  hand  of  violence  and  premeditated 
revenge. 

i- *-.  :l r- '?  i&fc'-' ^ HI-  v>.*ftjft  '&?«**£»  ite w  .  u r?  t ^  &Wfp.*l- 
4th.  THAT  the  Reverend  Mr.  Cornell  be  requested  to 
prepare  and  deliver  a  funeral  discourse  commemorative  of 
his  memory  and  services,  exposing  the  evils  of  the  pernici- 
ous custom  of  duelling,  and  enforcing  also  the  useful  and 
salutary  evidence  which  the  enlightened  and  comprehensive 
mind  of  the  deceased  hath  given  of  the  truth  of  the  Chris- 
tian Religion. 

5th.  THAT  a  copy  of  the  proceedings  of  this  meeting, 
signed  by  the  Chairman  and  attested  by  the  Secretary,  be 
published  in  one  or  both  of  the  newspapers  of  Trenton. 

JAMES  BRUERE,  Chairman. 
JAMES  H.  IMLAY,  Secretary. 
Allentown,  New-Jersey,  August  llth,  1804. 


Trenton,  City-Hotel,  Sept.  5th,  1804. 

*c  AT  a  meeting  of  the  Sergeants,  Counsellors,  Attornies, 
and  Solicitors  of  the  New- Jersey  Bar,  at  the  first  term  of 


(162) 

the  Supreme  Court  since  the  ever  to  be  lamented  fate  of 
General  Alexander  Hamilton,  AARON  D.  WOODRUFF,  Esq. 
Attorney-General,  was  called  to  the  chair,  and  JONATHAN 
RHEA,  Esquire,  appointed  Secretary: 

WHEREUPON  it  was  proposed,  and  by  the  Members  of  the 
Bar  unanimously  agreed,  in  this  public  manner  to  join  their 
fellow-citizens  throughout  the  United  States,  in  expressing 
their  deep  and  most  unfeigned  grief  for  the  premature  death 
of  that  unrivalled  man. 

SENSIBLE  that  no  language  of  theirs  could  comprehend 
his  various  talents  and  illustrious  actions,  and  tenderly  at- 
tached to  his  well  earned  fame,  they  will  not  diminish  its 
lustre  by  inadequate  conceptions. — In  common  with  the 
American  people,  they  only  unite  to  publish  what  theyfee^ 
that  the  pride  and  the  hope  of  their][country  is  for  ever  lost. 
This  poor  and  formal  tribute  to  his  memory  is  all  that,  as 
a  profession,  they  can  bestow — but  in  each  heart  there  is, 
erected  to  him  a  monument,  inscribed  with  perpetual  ad- 
miration and  affection. 

PUBLISHED  by  direction  of  the  New-Jersey  Bar, 

A.  D.  WOODRUFF,  Chairman. 
J.  RHEA,  Secretary. 


FROM  THE  CHARLESTON  COURIER. 

IT  may  perhaps  have  occasioned  some  surprise  that  we 
should  have  hitherto  said  so  little  on  a  subject  so  deeply  af- 
fecting to  America,  and  so  universally  lamented,  as  the 
death  of  Gen.  Hamilton.  It  might  have  been  expected 
that  we,  whose  Apolitical  sentiments  were  so  nearly  allied  t« 


(  163  ) 

those  of  that  great  man,  should  not  be  silent  on  his  loss, 
while  every  paper  on  the  continent  teemed  with  panegyric, 
of  one  kind  or  other,  on  the  splendour  of  his  talents,  and 
the  brilliancy  of  his  virtues.  The  tribute  which  enmity  it- 
self refuses  to  the  living  is  very  rarely  withheld  from  the 
dead ;  for,  thank  God !  the  cases  are  but  few  in  which  the 
human  heart  is  not  true  to  itself:  that  panegyric  should  be 
found  most  sparing  where  admiration  and  respect  may  have 
been  conceived  to  be  most  abundant,  will  perhaps  surprise ; 
but  can  surprise  only  those  who  have  not  very  deeply  con- 
sidered the  workings  of  the  soul  of  man  in  its  strongest; 
emotions. 

THAT  the  illustrious  personage  at  present  in  contempla- 
tion was  far  beyond  the  reach  of  any  praise,  few  will  refuse 
to  allow.  In  that  just  humility  which  a  sense  of  the  magni- 
tude of  the  subject,  veneration  for  the  man,  and  the  con- 
isciousness  of  our  incapacity,  inspired,  we  could  not  cast  a 
glance  at  an  attempt  to  delineate  such  excellence,  without 
drawing  back  from  it  with  awe....with  fear.  Standing  in 
this  posture,  however,  we  have  had  ample  occasion  to  re- 
joice that  the  abstinence  which  arose  from  instinctive  im- 
pulse, was  as  correct  as  if  it  had  been  the  result  of  cool  rea- 
son and  reflection,  since  the  praise  of  friends  so  much  bett 
ter  qualified  for  the  office  than  we  presume  to  be,  would 
have  thrown  our  attempts  into  the  shade  j  and  the  panegyric 
of  candid  men  who  were  his  political  enemies  when  he  liv- 
ed, far  transcend  all  that  we  could  hope  to  offer.  The  over- 
flowings of  our  hearts  might  be  taken  for  the  studied  pane-, 
gyric  of  the  partisan  ;  but  the  praise  of  generous  adversa4 
ries  carries  the  stamp  of  truth  upon  its  face,  and  has  the 
passport  of  sincerity  to  every  heart.  We  could  not  be 
wrong  in  abstaining  from  an  attempt  which  would  put  the 
eloquence  of  a  Flechier,  a  Mascaron,  a  Bossuet,  or  a  Burke, 


(  164) 

to  a  hard  trial,  and  which  is  yet  performed  to  greater  effect 
by  the  sincerity  of  honest  adversaries,  than  it  could  by  all 
the  eloquence  of  those  great  men  united,  if  they  were  all 
living,  and  were,  as  such  men  certainly  would  be,  the  friends 
and  enthusiastic  admirers  of  General  Hamilton. 

AMONG  those  who  have  done  honour  to  themselves,  and 
indeed  to  our  common  nature,  by  doing  justice  to  General 
Hamilton,  though  opposed  to  his  politics,  Mr.  Cheetham,  of 
New- York,  stands  eminently  foremost.  His  eulogy  upon 
that  illustrious  personage  is  highly  creditable  to  his  under- 
standing,  and  still  more  creditable  to  his  heart.  Rarely  have 
we  read  a  more  affecting  piece  of  eloquence.  It  breathes 
truth  and  sincerity  in  every  line.  In  it  the  heart  is  present- 
ed to  view,  as  it  were,  breathless  and  panting,  bursting 
through  the  fetters  of  political  prejudice,  standing  forth  to 
the  light  of  day,  and  desiring  to  be  understood.  Gracious 
God  1  how  lovely  is  truth  !  how  eloquent  does  virtue  make 
men  !  how  dignified  the  attitude  in  which  Mr.  Cheetham 
stands  in  that  honest  effusion.. ..and  how  much  more  digni- 
fied when  contrasted  with  that  savage  part  which  he  depre- 
cates ;  which  he  trusts  there  is  no  one  man  capable  of  acting  -f 
but  which  we,  from  the  very  beginning,  expected  with  some- 
thing approaching  to  certainty,  would  be  acted,  and  which 
now  impudently  and  ignominiously  stares  the  world  in  the 
face. 

PERHAPS  no  illustrious  personage,  ancient  or  modem,  has 
ever  had  a  more  glorious  monument  heaped  upon  his  ashes, 
than  General  Hamilton  has  received  from  the  concurrent  tes- 
timony of  all  parties,  and  all  characters  and  descriptions  of 
men  in  America.  His  friends  and  fellow-citizens  are  incon- 
solable. The  worthy  men  of  his  adversaries  pour  forth  the 
voluntary  tribute  of  regret  for  his  death,  and  panegyric  on 


(   165  ) 

"his  life  ;  and  the  finishing  polish,  the  most  brilliant  lustre,  is 
given  to  the  whole  by  the  malignity  of  those  biped  hysenas, 
•who,  as  they  thirst  for  the  blood  of  the  living,  hunger  for  the 
flesh  of  the  dead,  and  purvey  for  their  ravening  maws  from 
the  recesses  of  the  sepulchre. 

THE  time  has  been,  when  to  speak  irreverently  of  ttae 
mighty  dead,  would  be  looked  upon  as  worse  than  sacrilege, 
and  when  the  wretch  who  carried  his  animosity  beyond  the 
grave,  would  be  hunted  down  as  an  alien  and  enemy  to  the 
human  race.  But  the  moral  world  has  undergone  an  earth- 
quake shock,  in  which  the  hearts  of  some  have  been  cast 
out  of  their  bodies,  and  cinders  raked  from  the  €res  of  Hell 
put  into  their  place.  What  Burke  said  of  the  Jacobins  and 
Revolutionists  of  Europe,  may  on  this  occasion  be  applied 
to  the  Jacobins  of  America.  "  They  have  tigers  to  fall 
upon  animated  strength.  They  have  hyenas  to  pray  upon 
dead  carcases.  The  National  Menagerie  is  collected  by 
the  first  physiologists  of  the  time,  and  it  is  -defective  in  no 
description  of  savage  nature.  Neither  sex  nor  age....?20/  the 
sanctuary  of  the  tomb  is  sacred  to  them;  and  they  deny  events 
the  departed,  the  sad  immunities  of  the  grave....If  all  Revolu- 
tionists [continues  he]  were  not  proof  against  all  caution,  I 
should  recommend  it  to  their  consideration,  that  no  persons 
were  ever  known  in  history,  sacred  or  profane,  to  vex  the 
sepulchre,  and  by  their  sorceries  to  call  up  the  prophetic  dead 
with  any  other  event  than  the  prediction  of  their  own  dis- 
astrous fate.. ..Leave  me,  oh ./  leave  me  to  repose" 

WITH  the  sentiments  of  Mr..  Cheetham  respecting  the 
person  who  terminated  the  existence  of  Gen.  Hamilton,  we 
most  completely  concur.  To  publish  our  opinions  upon  that 
subject  and  that  person,  while  he  lies  under  the  cloud  of  un- 
acquitted  homicide,  would  be  injustice,  and  look  like  a  de- 
sire to  inflame  the  minds  of  those  who  must  hereafter  tiT 


(  166) 

Jrim*...?/'  there  be  laiv  in  this  country.  But  it  may  be  worth 
while  to  ask,  Whether  the  Chief  Magistracy  of  a  country  can 
Consistently  with  law,  reason,  justice,  religion,  morality,  or 
Common  sense,  remain  deposited  in  hands  embrued  in  the  blood 
of  a  fellow-citizen  ?  Much  as  we  admired  General  Hamil- 
ton, and  ardently  as  we  wished  to  see  the  magistracy  of  the 
potent,  yet  gentle  grasp  of  his  mighty  mind,  we  would  have 
written  every  pen  we  have  to  the  stump,  to  keep  him  for- 
ever from  all  office  of  which  he  would  have  been  morally 
unfit,  if  he  had  in  cold-blooded,  deliberate  malice,  taken  the 
life  of  any  citizen,  even  of  CoL  Burr.  As  for  this  last  men- 
tioned gentleman,  he  may  say  in  the  words  of  Richard, "  Why 
now  my  golden  dream  is  out"  But,  so  far  unlike  Richard, 
he  has  lost  the  bright  reivard  of  daring  minds.,.,?ox.  EVER. 

READERS  !  whatever  your  political  opinions  may  be,  pre* 
serve  your  morals  unstained. ...your  hearts  unvitiated  by 
malice.  What  a  frightful  wreck  that  man  presents  to  the 
moral  eye,  who  has  silenced  the  cries  of  conscience,  and 
stopped  the  throbs  of  humanity  within  his  bosom,  certaiiY 
false  and  malicioiis  observations  upon  General  Hamilton, 
since  his  death,  disseminated  through  the  papers  of  Ameri- 
ca, will  show  you.  Reflect  upon  them  with  abhorrence* 
And  as  on  one  hand  I  conjure  you,  without  reference  to  poli- 
tical opinions,  to  applaud  Mr.  Cheetham  for  his  worthy  sen- 
timents, so  I  beseech  you  to  avert  your  eyes  from  the  hi- 
deous spectacle  presented  by  others,  and  condemn,  but  do 
not  <:urse  them. 

Aspicimus  populus,  quorum  non  sufficit  irsc 
Occklisse  aliquem  :  sed  pectora,  Brachla,  vulturrv 
Credideriut  genus  esse  cibi.  JUVEXAL,  15th  SAT. 

An  impious  crew  we  Iravc  beheld,  whose  rage 
Their  en'my's  very  life  could  not  assuage, 
Unless  they  banquet  on  the  wretch  they  sie\v, 
JJevour  the  corpse,  and  lick  the  ulood  they  drew  ! 

DRYDEN'S-  JUVEJTAI;. 


(  167) 

SAME    PAPER.  , 

As  we  are  this  day  called  upon,  not  less  by  inclination 
than  duty  and  gratitude,  to  offer  the  last  public  mark  of  our 
respect  to  General  Hamilton,  it  may  not  be  amiss  to  say  a 
few  words  respecting  that  illustrious  personage. 

IF  we  make  a  fair  estimate  of  the  value  of  those  great 
men  who  have  distinguished  themselves  in  this  most  im- 
portant era  of  the  history  of  man,  and  judge  of  the  services 
they  would  hereafter  confer,  by  those  they  have  already 
rendered  to  the  states  ;  we  must  consider  the  death  of  Gene- 
ral Hamilton  as 'the  greatest  loss,  not  only  which  the  country 
has  hitherto  sustained,  but  far  greater  than  it  is  possible  for 
it  to  sustain  at  this  time,  by  the  death  of  any  single  individu- 
al. The  reverence  due  to  the  great  champion  of  our  free- 
dom, and  founder  of  our  national  Independence,  Washington, 
may  perhaps  give  occasion  to  some  people  to  start  with  sur- 
prise, at  a  position  of  such  wide  and  sweeping  comprehension, 
as  to  the  past... .while,  on  the  other  hand,  there  will  not  be 
wanting  those,  who,  taking  their  opinions  rather  from  the 
muddy,  green-mantled  pool  of  party  prejudice  and  rancorous 
faction,  than  from  the  pure  fountain  of  wisdom,  distributive 
justice,  and  truth,  will  not  only  question  but  condemn  it. 
To  the  former,  whose  noble  and  disinterested  sentiments  of 
gratitude  for  a  deceased  benefactor,  we  bow  with  respect, 
but  not,  in  this  instance,  with  implicit  acquiescence  ;  we  say, 
that  the  great  and  glorious  being  they  revere,  not  more  than 
we  do,  had  accomplished  the  object  of  his  mission,  and  fell 
into  the  grave  by  the  ordinary  visitation  of  Heaven....ripe 
in  old  age  and  full  of  honours,  venerable  with  the  hoar  of 
many  years,  and  covered  with  the  blessings  of  a  grateful 
people.  He  had  lived  long  enough  to  do  all  which  the 
wisdom,  the  valour,  and  the  virtue,  of  one  man  could  do 
for  his  country,  and  he  died  time  enough  to  escape  that 


(  168  ) 

mortifying  condition  of  life,  in  which  the  canker  of  exist- 
ence and  decrepitude  eats  away  the  hoarded  frame  of  vigor- 
ous manhood,  and  the  truhk,  leafless,  bare,  stripped  of  its 
verdant  honours,  or,  perhaps,  thunderstruck  at  the  head, 
bears  melancholy  testimony  of  its  past  grandeur,  only  by 
the  contrast  of  its  present  decay.  To  wish  that  Washington, 
were  immortal  would  be  impious,  even  for  Americans.... 
to  wish  him  to  live  till  the  rose  was  withered  on  the  branch, 
and  breathed  no  smell,  would  be  ungrateful.  And  here 
lies  the  consolation  of  us  all,  who,  with  our  posterity,  must 
remain  the  indefeasible  grantees  and  debtors  of  the  powers 
of  Washington  for  all  we  possess ;  that  though  his  death, 
let  it  happen  when  it  would,  must  have  shocked  us  like 
some  of  those  natural  convulsions  which  overwhelm  our 
minds  with  horror  while  they  spare  ourselves;  yet,  now 
that  it  has  pleased  God  so  to  will  it  that  he  is  gone,  we 
must  recollect  that  he  might,  in  common  with  some  of  the 
greatest  men  that  ever  existed,  have  extended  the  duration 
of  his  life  beyond  that  of  his  powers,  and  ere  he  died,  want- 
ed strength  to  sustain  the  weight  of  such  a  world  of  dignity 
and  glory  as  Fortune,  for  that  one  occasion,  conspiring 
with  supreme  virtues  and  talents,  and  the  best  of  causes, 
had  laid  upon  his  Atlantean  shoulders. 

THE  state  of  Hamilton  was  different  j  a  colossus  of  might 
he  stood  j  the  American  commonwealth  on  his  shoulders  ; 
with  one  foot  in  the  vigour  of  manhood,  and  the  other  in 
the  counsel  of  ripened  years.  Whatever  services 'he  had  done 
to  his  country,  the  growth  of  his  talents,  and  the  mediocrity 
of  his  time  of  life,  gave  ample  hope  that  he  would  have  done 
much  more.  Far  from  beginning  to  dwindle,  the  fruit 
was  not  yet  at  full  melioration,  and  its  promised  growth  and 
perfection  was,  to  the  discerning  eye,  greater  than  the  past. 
Superlatively  great  as  he  was  in  retrospect,  the  eye  to  which 


9 

(  169) 

God  gives  to  look  into  the  womb  of  time,  could  perceive 
him  greater  in  prospective  :  And  the  Genius  of  America,  if 
its  splendour,  glory,  and  felicity,  were  her  aim,  could  only 
have  wished  that  Hamilton  were  to  live,  and  that  an  occa- 
sion should  offer,  in  which,  as  has  sometimes  happened, 
the  nation  could  be  exalted  to  the  highest  supremacy  of  glo- 
ry by  the  virtues  and  talents  of  one  individual. 

WHAT  did  Hamilton  want  of  the  essential  constituents  of 
a  great  man  ?  Who  is  there  in  the  ancient  or  modern  world 
that,  taking  in  the  whole  round  of  human  perfections,  and 
moral  and  patriotic  virtues,  has  surpassed  him  ?  And  which 
of  the  great  men  who  have  passed  in  review  before  us  over 
the  field  of  history,  whose  virtues  have  suffered  so  little 
diminution  from  an  alloy,  the  vices  that  cling  to  humanity? 
We  believe  none.  With  the  thunder  of  Demosthenes,  the 
splendour  of  Cicero,  and  the  patriotic  fervour  of  both,  he 
exhausted  his  last  breath  in  the  service  of  his  country.  But, 
unlike  the  former,  the  lustre  of  his  mental  endowments  was 
not  stained  by  cowardice  or  effeminacy....No  Cheronaea 
witnessed  the  pusillanimous  flight  of  our  American  orator. 
No  Trsezene  or  Egina  bore  testimony  to  his  slothfulness  or 
unmanly  indulgence.  Nor  did  he,  like  the  latter,  make 
himself  the  prominent  figure  in  his  own  eloquence,  or  dimi- 
nish the  value  of  his  services  by  unreasonable  or  arrogant 
expectations.  As  brave,  and  in  sentiment  and  design  as  ex- 
alted, as  the  Macedonian  Alexander,  he  was  least  in  his  own 
opinion,  exempt  from  arrogance  or  pride,  and  unstained  by 
complexional  despotism.  With  the  universal  genius  of  Cae- 
sar, and  clemency  as  signal,  but  more  sincere,  no  alloy  of 
ambition  cheapened  the  composition  of  his  heart.  He  ab~ 
horred  a  tyrant  as  much  as  Brutus,  but  he  abhorred  the  use 
of  the  poignard  more.  He  was  as  Cato,  just  j  but  unlike 
Cato,  he  was  severe  only  to  himself.  And  that  mercy 


xvhich  a  just  sense  of  the  common  infirmity  of  man's  nature 
never  fails  to  infuse  into  great  minds,  tempered  down  to 
forgiveness  his  judgments  upon  every  being,  and  every  oc- 
casion, but  himself  and  his  own  conduct. 

IT  is  found  to  be  almost  beyond  the  lot  of  human  nature 
to  display  any  great  quality  of  heart  or  mind  without  some 
counterbalance,  some  discolouration  of  infirmity.  If  "W* 
look  to  the  life  of  this  illustrious  personage,  we  shall  find 
more  to  praise  and  less  to  condemn  than  in  almost  any  other 
person  who  has  made  so  distinguished  a  figure.  Men  of 
such  stupendous  powers,  as  even  his  enemies  allow  he  pos- 
sessed, have  seldom  been  found  unadulterated  with  some 
foible,  some  vice,  or  some 'oddity,  which  have  detracted 
from  their  own  general  merits,  and  poisoned,  or  at  least 
diminished  the  enjoyments  of  those  about  them.  Johnson 
was  rude,  overbearing,  and  insufferable  to  all  (and  they  were 
but  few)  who  levelled  with  him,  unless  they  had  the  misfor- 
tune to  deserve  from  his  pity  what  they  could  not  obtain 
from  his  politeness.  Newton  was  absent,  and  enveloped 
from  society  in  clouds  of  abstraction.  Swift  was  furious, 
sneering,  harsh,  and  fastidious.  The  elder  Pitt  was,  from 
excessive,  capricious  passion,  at  times  the  curse  of  his  house. 
In  short,  if  we  examine  the  lives  of  almost  all  great  men,  we 
shall  find  them  frail,  feeble,  and  extravagant  j  odd  and  ca- 
pricious in  some  points,  in  proportion  to  the  magnitude  of 
their  powers  and  perfections ;  and  the  splendour  of  their 
talents  in  others.  Not  so  our  illustrious  warrior  and  states- 
man, Hamilton.  High  in  science,  he  displayed  it  not  un- 
necessarily ;  and  when  he  did,  disclosed  it  with  such  humi- 
lity and  diffidence,  as  if  he  felt  his  superiority  to  be  only  an 
adventitious  circumstance,  for  which  it  was  his  duty  rather 
to  be  humbly  thankful  to  God  who  gave  it,  than  proudly 
overbearing  to  his  creatures. ...and  as  if  he  considered  the 


talents  he  possessed  the  property  of  his  fellow- citizens,  con- 
fided by  the  Giver  of  all  to  his  care,  to  be  dealt  out  to  them 
not  as  his  own  and  as  a  favour,  but  as  their  property,  de- 
posited in  his  keeping  for  their  use.  In  the  pursuits  of  an 
arduous  and  abstruse  professional  science,  he  never  suffered 
himself  to  be  caught  napping  in  the  contemptuous  affectation 
of  absence,  or  bewildered  in  real  or  pretended  abstraction ; 
never  was  found  peevish  from  interruption,  hasty  from  op- 
position, Or  supercilious  from  consciousness  of  superiority. 
The  friend,  the  fellow-citizen,  the  stranger  who  approached 
him,  found  the  same  serene  equanimity  and  suavity  at  all 
times  portrayed  in  his  manners,  beaming  from  his  coun- 
tenance, and  dropping  from  his  lips.... Those  lips  on  which 
the  Bees  of  Hybla  perched  while  he  was  yet  cradled....Wife, 
children,  friends,  domestics,  dependants,  were  made  by 
the  sweetness,  the  tender  humility,  the  wise  playfulness, 
and  the  eternally  unruffled  cheerfulness  of  the  man,  to  for- 
get what  every  one  else  knew,  namely,  that  they  were  then 
in  contact  with  one  of  the  greatest  of  mankind.  He  lived, 
and  as  he  lived  he  died,  a  creature  of  the  public,  devoted 
to  its  service. 

No  man  was  more  teemingly  filled  with  that  enthusiasm 
which  distinguished  the  Roman  breast,  and  animated  the 
heroes  of  that  republic  to  the  performance  and  achievements 
which  we  contemplate  at  this  day  with  astonishment,  doubt, 
and  admiration  ;  with  that  patriotic  enthusiasm  which  glow- 
ed in  the  bosom  of  Curtius,  of  Regulus,  and  of  the  Decii, 
and  impelled  them  to  devote  their  lives  a  willing  sacrifice  to 
the  good  of  their  country. 

INDEED,  it  is  hard  to  tell  which  was  most  conspicuous  in 
this  extraordinary  man — the  splendour  and  usefulness  of  his 
public  talents,  or  the  happy  effects  of  his  private  virtues. 


(172) 

Enel-getic,  disinterested,  perspicacious,  penetrating,  stre- 
nuous, and  intrepid,  he  discharged  his  public  functions  with 
unrivalled  greatness,  and  without  ostentation :  mild,  gentle, 
affable,  sincere,  unassuming,  full  of  simple  grace  and  natu- 
ral dignity,  he  was  unsurpassed  in  the  discharge  of  the  so- 
cial duties,  in  every  relation  of  domestic  life,  insomuch  that 
those  who  only  heard  his  eloquence  at  the  bar,  or  at  the 
public  tribunals,  or  saw  his  deeds  of  cnterp  rise  as  a  soldier, 
would  conclude  he  was  born  for  that  particular  situation 
alone ;  while  those  who  witnessed  his  life  at  the  hearth, 
would  swear  that  to  plunge  him  in  the  storms  of  public  con- 
tention,  was  to  misapply  the  man,  and  to  rob  private  socie- 
ty of  one  of  its  brightest  ornaments  and  greatest  blessings. 

WE  wilt  not  break  in  upon  the  sanctity  of  this  hallowed 
day  *,  with  any  observations  unworthy  of  the  occasion,  or 
contradictory  to  the  spirit  of  mildness,  meekness,  charity, 
and  Christian  benevolence,  which  was  the  soul  of  the  inimita- 
ble Hamilton,  We  will  only  say....  Americans !  you  have  lost 
your  champion,  your  counsellor,  and  your  guide.  The  or- 
nament of  your  country  is  destroyed — the  lustre  of  your 
state  is  extinguished.  The  head  that  guided  your  guides — 
that  clearest  head  that  ever  conceived,  and  that  sweetest 
tongue  that  ever  uttered  the  dictates  of  wisdom,  which  con- 
founded your  foes,  and  enlightened  your  councils,  is  now 
mouldering  to  clay.  That  arm  which  from  youth  to  death 
was  ready  raised  to  fall  upon  and  crush  the  heads  of  your 
enemies,  is  now  melting  to  a  clod  of  the  valley.  And  that 
heart  which  braved  and  fluttered  even  Britons,  when  Britons 
were  your  foes  ;  which  now  poured  forth  its  might  in  a  tor- 
rent  of  terror  upon  armed  hoats,  and  again  flowed  in  hea- 
venly mercy  to  the  conquered  and  prostrate,  is  by  the  hand 

ft 
*The  day  devoted  to  a  public  testimonial  of  respect  for  Hamilton's 

memory,  by  the  citizens  of  Charleston. 


(  ITS) 

of  hatred  and  ruthless  vengeance,  given  to  the  worms.  Yes, 
Hamilton  is  gone,  for  ever  gone  !  No  more  shall  his  valour 
and  military  virtues  flash  confusion  in  the  face  of  your  ene- 
mies ;  no  more  his  sagacious  and  perspective  wisdom  guide 
\  our  councils  ;  to  you  all  those  blessings  are  lost  ;  from  you 
they  are  outrageously  torn.  Yet,  fellow-citizens,  profit  by 
his  death,  as  'you  have  profited  by  his  life.  Let  it  awaken 
you  from  that  drunken  dream  in  which  you  have  wasted 
away  your  honour,  your  morals,  and  your  religion — and, 
alas !  given  to  the  grave — sent  to  eternity  for  a  mere  tem- 
porary offence,  so  many  of  your  fellow-creatures.  Fellow- 
citizens,  let  it  produce  in  your  hearts  a  wholesome  horror  of 
deeds  of  blood  ;  and  let  it  open  every  channel  of  your  souls, 
while  in  sincerity  we  pour  into  them  this  undeniable  truth, 
that  killing  by  duel  is  inexpiable  murder,  against  condem- 
nation for  which  no  worldly  custom,  no  fashionable  habit, 
will  be  allowed  by  God  as  a  plea  in  bar.  That  to  take  the 
life  of  another  on  any  account  but  real  self-defence,  is  a 
crime  to  which  God,  being  all  just,  cannot  extend  mercy: 
that  you  deceive  yourselves  when  you  imagine  a  weapon  le- 
velled at  you  by  mutual  agreement  with  an  antagonist,  af- 
fords the  plea  of  self-defence :  for  that  on  the  contrary,  it 
enhances  the  damnable  crime  of  murder  by  the  still  more 
damnable,  if  more  damnable  were  possible,  crime  of  sui- 
cide. It  is  no  time  to  palter  with  this  great  moral  question 
now,  when  such  examples  are  before  us.  The  legislators 
who  do  not  oppose  terrible  penal  laws  to  the  perpetration  of 
murder Iby  duel,  are  accessories  before  the  fact  to  those  who 
commit  that  crime.  And  those  who  would  not  execute  the 
laws,  if  made,  and  terrify  die  community  from  such  a  crime 
by  repeated  victims,  would  be  in  fact  murderers  themselves. 

DEVOTE  this  day  to  pious  contemplation,  suitable  to  the 
melancholy  event — let  your  contemplation  bring  forth  fruits 


of  amendment,  and  let  Hamilton  be  your  example  in  every 
thing  but  in  the  mode  of  his  death. 

SAME  PAPER. 

THE  universal  shock  which  the  death  of  Gen.  Hamilton 
has  given  to  this  country  from  one  end  to  the  other,  suffi- 
ciently denotes  the  sense  entertained  of  his  extraordinary 
merits  and  greatness ;  of  the  services  he  had  done,  and  the 
services  expected  from  him.  The  full  extent  and  magnitude 
of  the  loss  sustained  by  his  death,  few  optics  are  able  to 
measure  ;  and  none  can  imagine,  but  those  who  are  capable 
of  knowing  how  much  the  wisdom  of  one  man  may  do  for  a 
nation,  or  even  for  the  good  of  the  whole  world  ;  and  who 
at  the  same  time  know  the  almost  unfathomable  depth  of 
that  great  man's  mind.  It  seems,  however,  as  if  it  was  or- 
dained by  Heaven,  that  nothing  belonging  to  him  should  be 
useless  to  his  country  and  his  fellow-creatures,  since  even 
that  most  dreadful  calamity,  his  death,  is  likely  in  one  re- 
spect to  be  beneficial  to  them.  It  has  roused  and  set  in  mo- 
tion the  almost  extinguished  sense  of  humanity,  which  once 
rendered  the  murder  of  a  fellow-creature  a  subject  of  unut- 
terably horrible  contemplation. 

DUELLING  is  now  looked  upon  with  something  like  the 
detestation  it  deserves  ;  and  will  in  all  probability  be  put  not 
only  under  the  anathema  of  the  general  heart  and  mind  of 
the  country,  but  under  the  heavy  penalty  of  the  law.  If 
those  vices  are  most  dangerous  to  society  which  assume  the 
exterior  appearance  of  excellence,  and.  simulate  virtue,  duel- 
ling ought  to  be  treated  with  greater  rigour  than  common 
murder,  since  it  carries  with  it  circumstances,  which,  to 
young,  to  light,  and  to  superficial  minds,  and  above  all,  to 
the  boastful  and  vain  glorious  fool,  render  it  so  seductive  as 
to  overcome  all  scruples  of  conscience,  all  feeling  for  a  fel- 


( 1") 

low-creature,  all  sense  of  duty  to  God,  and,  what  with  some 
wretches  is  more  extraordinary,  all  sense  of  their  own 
danger.  For  these  reasons,  and  since  the  voice  of  all  man- 
kind is  already  raised  with  just  and  unmitigated  abhorrence 
and  vengeance,  against  the  perpetrator  of  every  other  mode 
or  species  of  murder,  the  law  should  assume  an  aspect  of 
tenfold  terror  to  the  duellist,  and  put  him  by  a  deep,  strong- 
ly written,  black,  unalterable  letter,  out  of  the  pale  of  hu- 
man mercy,  and  offer  him  up  an  expiatory  sacrifice  for  the 
many  thousands  of  murders  which  cry  to  heaven  for  ven- 
geance on  the  country  that  suffered  such  deeds  to  be  done, 
and  let  its  laws  lie  passive. 


**  When  by  just  vengeance  guilty  mortals  perish, 
"  The  gods  behold  their  punishment  with  pleasure, 
««  And  lay  the  uplifted  thunderbolt  aside." 

ADDISOST. 


EXCLUSIVE  of  the  sin  of  murder,  duelling  has  other  ruin- 
ous circumstances  attending  it.. .ruinous  to  the  prosperity  and 
peace  of  whole  families  ;  ruinous  to  the  morals,  well  being, 
and  peace  of  society ;  and  ruinous  to  the  common  weal,  as 
being  often  the  instrumental  agent  of  faction,  and  corrupting 
the  very  first  principle  of  our  constitutional  freedom,  and 
destroying  the  freedom  of  election. 

[THE  foregoing  elegant  productions,  from  the  Charleston 
Courier,  containing  many  striking,  correct,  and  original  ob- 
servations, are  from  the  warm  heart  and  clear  head  of  Mr. 
S.  CULLEN  CARPENTER,  editor  of  that  paper  ;  a  gentleman 
whose  pen  has  justly  gained  him  celebrity  throughout  the 
United  States.  It  was  his  happiness  personally  to  know 
him  whose  virtues  and  transcendent  talents  he  has  here  so 
eloquently  described.] 

2  A 


( ire) 

THE  following  elegant  and  pathetic  effusion  is  from  the 
pen  of  Mr.  Lathrop,  editor  of  the  Utica  Patriot: 

DEATH  OF  GENERAL  HAMILTON. 

"  When  the  bright  guardians  of  a  country  die, 
The  grateful  tear  in  tenderness  will  start ; 
And  the  keen  anguish  of  a  reddening  eye, 
Disclose  the  deep  afflictions  of  the  heart !" 

To  swell  the  sable  triumphs  of  the  tomb,  the  great 
Destroyer,  in  pointing  his  shaft  at  Hamilton,  has  selected  a 
victim  of  no  ordinary  value.  He  has  not  only  taken  from 
the  bosom  of  a  beloved  family  its  solace  and  support ;  from 
the  circle  of  his  immediate  friends  its  pride  and  ornament  > 
from  the  forum  its  most  distinguished  advocate ;  from  so- 
siety  an  eminent  and  useful  citizen ;  but  from  his  country 
he  has  taken  its  ablest  statesman,  its  warmest  patriot,  its 
great  benefactor. 

WITH  talents  of  a  superior  order,  the  choicest  in  nature's 
gift,  improved  by  an  elegant  and  refined  education,  strength- 
ened by  intense  and  laborious  application,  directed  to  use- 
fulness by  a  steady  love  of  justice  and  an  undeviating  ad- 
herence to  the  cause  of  truth,  as  a  soldier,  a  statesman,  a 
public  advocate,  a  warm  friend  and  zealous  guardian  of  the 
liberties  of  his  country  ;  the  invaluable  life  of  this  distinguish- 
ed citizen  has  been  spent  with  increasing  glory  to  himself, 
and  incalculable  usefulness  to  his  country. 

As  a  member  of  the  family  of  the  illustrious  Washington  ; 
as  his  companion  in  arms ;  as  his  counsellor  and  friend,  he 
shared  with  him  the  dangers  of  the  revolution,  and  reaped 
with  him  the  glory  of  its  accomplishment.  The  siege  of 
York -Town,  which  closed  the  military  operations  of  the 
country,  witnessed  the  last  brilliant  display  of  his  military; 


(  177  ) 

skill  arid  unyielding  bravery.  As  a  soldier,  he  united  brave- 
ry with  humanity,  skill  with  activity.  So  eminently  dis- 
tinguished were  his  military  talents,  that  he  was  designated 
on  a  momentous  occasion  by  the  great  Washington  himself, 
as  the  man  of  his  choice,  to  take  the  active  command  of  our 
armies. 

As  a  statesman,  the  astonishing  powers  of  his  mind  had 
full  scope  for  exertion,  and  he  has  left  the  most  splendid 
testimony  of  their  extent  and  usefulness.  With  talents  pro- 
found and  active,  with  genius  acute  and  penetrating,  with 
learning  deep  and  extensive,  he  made  unwearied  researches 
in  political  science,  and  has  left  as  a  rich  legacy  to  his  coun- 
trymen, a  luminous  view  of  the  most  correct  principles  in 
civil  policy  and  government.  As  a  minister  of  finance  and 
a  constitutional  counsellor  of  the  executive,  he  shone  with 
peculiar  greatness.  The  fiscal  regulations  of  our  country 
witness  his  versatile  and  extraordinary  powers,  in  the  speedy 
acquisition  and  practical  improvement  of  the  principles  of 
science,  new  and  intricate.  Called  by^a  beloved  President 
to  raise  the  sinking  credit  of  a  nation,  to  explore  its  resour- 
ces, and  direct  its  finances  to  an  effective  application,  we 
were  astonished  at  the  facility  with  which  he  accomplished 
this  arduous  undertaking. 

As  an  advocate  at  the  bar,  he  was  unrivalled.  He  had 
drained  the  deepest  fountains  of  legal  science,  and  from  the 
more  pleasing  source  of  belles-letters  learning  he  had  acquir- 
ed the  most  commanding  eloquence.  In  the  practice  of 
professional  duty,  he  became  the  good  man's  friend  and 
advocate,  a  terror  to  the  oppressor,  and  a  foe  to  iniquity. 

"  He  was  never  found  to  pluck  down  justice 
From  its  aw  ful  bench, 

To  trip  the  cause  of  law,  or  blunt  the  sword 
That  guards  the  peace  and  safety  of  the  state." 


(  irs) 

IN  the  private  walks  of  life,  through  all  its  relative  duties, 
Hamilton  was  highly  valued.... 

"  His  life  was  gentle,  and  the  elements  so  mixt 
In  him,  that  nature  might  stand  up  and  say 
To  ail  the  world — this  was  a  man." 

BUT  to  be  the  pride  of  his  country  and  its  chief  ornament, 
availed  him  nothing !  Neither  his  greatness,  nor  his  use- 
fulness, could  avert  the  impending  blow,  or  wrest  from  its 
purposes  the  counsels  of  the  Almighty. 

"  AH!  what  avail'dthat  wide  capacious  mind, 
With  every  science  accurately  fraught, 
The  keen  ey'd  fancy  spark'ling  and  refin'd, 
The  blaze  of  genius  and  the  hurst  of  thought  ? 
Ah  !  what  avail'd  that  magnitude  of  soul> 
Warm'd  to  debate  by  patriotic  fire, 
Which  bade  the  bolts  of  eloquence  to  roll, 
And  taught  astonish'd  senates  to  admire  ? 
Bade  his  lov'd  country  shake  away  the  gloom, 
Which  bound  her  feeble  temples  with  disgrace  ; 
And  like  the  bold,  but  deathless  chief  of  Rome, 
Twine. everlasting  laurels  in  its  place  ? 
Ah  !  nought  avail'd  the  mind's  extended  power, 
Nor  worth,  nor  greatness,  could  avert  his  doom  j 
'    Snatch'd  in  the  sun-beam  swiftness  of  an  hour, 
To  swell  the  triumphs  of  th'  insatiate  tomb." 

YES,  reader,  this  brilliant  luminary  in  the  literary  world, 
this  splendid  orb  of  our  political  hemisphere,  is  set  for  ever ! 
A  star  of  the  first  magnitude  in  the  political  temple  is  extin- 
guished !  A  Pillar  of  superior  strength  is  fallen  !  Cut  off  in 
the  full  vigour  of  life,  in  the  full  possession  of  his  faculties, 
and  in  the  midst  of  all  his  usefulness,  the  great  Hamilton 
now  sleeps  with  his  fathers  !  That  intellectual  fountain,  from 
which  fiowed  the  richest  streams  of  eloquence,  is  dried  up ; 
the  fire  of  that  genius,  whose  acuteness  pierced  the  inmost 
recesses  of  science,  is  quenched  for  ever  j  that  eye,  whose 
penetrating  glance  was  the  sure  index  of  an  acute  and  pe- 


(  iw) 

netrating  mind,  is  now  closed  for  ever ;  that  tongue,  on  whost 
eloquence  listening  senates  hung  with  admiration,  is  now 
silent  for  ever  j  and  dumb  for  ever  is  that  voice  which  was  the 
harbinger  of  wisdom,  and  the  herald  of  instruction.  .  The 
trophies  of  the  grave  are  enriched  with  a  gem  of  superior 
worth  j  the  world  is  rifled  of  an  intellectual  treasure  of  in- 
estimable value. 

<•«  O  !  what  a  fall  was  there  my  countrymen* 
Then  you  and  I,  and  all  of  us  fell  down, 
Whilst  bloody  treason  triumph'd  over  us." 

THOUGH  the  grave  now  shrouds  the  mortal  part  of  the 
now  immortal  Hamilton,  his  memory  and  his  fame,  are  en- 
shrined in  the  bosoms  of  his  grateful  countrymen,  and  will 
be  ever  cherished  and  protected,  with  the  warmest  emotions 
of  love  and  admiration.  This  sacred  deposit  will  be  trans- 
mitted to  posterity  in  the  fulness  of  its  glory  and  the  purity 
of  its  excellence.  A  distinguished  page  in  the  annals  of  our 
country,  will  be  adorned  with  the  record  of  his  character, 
with  a  faithful  delineation  of  his  talents,  virtues,  achieve- 
ments, and  greatness,  and  the  admiration  of  posterity  shall 
perpetuate  his  fame.  There  will  the  record  of  the  sad  ca- 
tastrophe of  his  death  draw  forth  the  tear  of  pity  from  the 
eye  of  tenderness,  and  the  sigh  of  regret  from  the  bosom  of 
humanity.  There  will  the  moralist  read  with  warm  appro- 
bation the  sentiments  of  a  Hamilton,  on  the  subject  of  the 
barbarous  custom  to  which  he  fell  a  sacrifice ;  there  will  he 
see  the  abhorrence  in  which  he  held  a  practice,  sanctioned 
by  the  manners  of  the  age  in  which  he  lived ;  and  which, 
from  a  peculiar  combination  of  circumstances,  he  conceived 
as  to  himself  was  unavoidable.  There  will  the  Christian 
dwell  with  exquisite  delight  on  the  record  of  the  bright  ex- 
ample of  this  great  man,  who,  in  the  fulness  of  belief,  em- 
braced the  doctrines  of  Christianity,  partook  of  its  ordinan- 
ces, and  died  in  the  consoling  hope  of  its  promises. 


(  180) 


FROM  THE  BOSTON  REPERTORf, 

TEARS  OF  COLUMBIA. 

ALTERED  FROM  COLLINS. 

WHILE  lost  to  all  her  former  mirth, 
Columbia,  weeping,  bends  to  earth, 

And  seeks  her  ffero's  grave- 
While  stain'd  with  blood,  she  strives  to  tear, 
Unseemly,  from  her  fragrant  hair 

The  wreaths  that  Summer  gave  : 

The  thoughts  that  musing  Pity  pays, 
And  fond  Remembrance  loves  to  raise, 

Shall  on  her  steps  attend  ; 
Still  Fancy,  to  herself  unkind, 
Awakes  to  grief  the  soften'd  mind, 

And  paints  the  bleeding  friend. 

By  Hudson's  broad  descending  wave 
Her  ceaseless  tears  bedew  the  grave, 

Where  Hamilton  is  laid—    - 
That  sacred  spot,  with  cypress  crown'd, 
Shall  jealous  Honour  watch  around, 

And  Truth  protect  the  shade. 

O'er  him  whose  doom  thy  virtues  grieve, 
Aerial  forms  shall  sit  at  eve, 

And  bend  the  pensive  head ; 
And  fall'n  by  fate's  severe  command, 
Imperial  Honour's  awful  hand 

Shall  point  his  lowly  bed. 

The  warlike  dead  of  ev'ry  age, 
Who  fill  the  fair  recording  page, 

Shall  leave  their  sainted  rest—. 
And  half  reclining  on  his  spear, 
Each  wond'ring  chief  by  turns  appear 

To  hail  the  blooming  guest. 

Great  Washington,  unknown  to  yield  ; 
Montgomery,  from  AbranCs field — 

Shall  gaze  with  fix'd  delight ; 
Again  their  Country's  wrongs  they  feel  ; 
Again  they  snatch  the  gleaming  steel* 

And  wish  th'  avenging  fight. 


(m) 

But  lo !  where  sunk  in  deep  despair, 
Her  garment  torn,  her  bosom  bare. 

Impatient  Freedom  lies ! 
Her  matted  tresses  madly  spread, 
To  ev'ry  sod  which  wraps  the  dead, 

She  turns  her  joyless  eyes. 

If  weak  to  sooth  thy  soften'd  heart, 
These  pictur'd  glories  nought  impart 

To  dry  thy  constant  tear ; 
If  yet  in  sorrow's  distant  eye, 
Expos'd  and  pale  thou  see'st  him  lie. 

Where  Greenwich  shades  appear  !— • 

Where'er  from  time  thou  court'st  relief. 
The  Muse  shall  still  with  social  grief, 

With  thee  her  vigils  keep : 
Ev'n  Vernon's  lone  sepulchral  vale 
Shall  learn  the  sad  respected  tale, 

Where  sainted  relicts  sleep. 


FROM  THE  ALEXANDRIA  DAILY  ADVERTISER. 

AW  ACROSTIC. 

H  ARK  !  how  the  toilsome  noise  of  busy  trade, 
A  mid  wan  sorrow's  heart-felt  sighs,  is  lost ; 
M  ark  how  the  hero  and  the  tender  maid 
I   n  tears  unite  to  mourn  their  country's  boast; 
L  ong  has  the  fiend-like  custom  bath'd  in  wo 
T  he  Heav'n  taught  soul,  the  pure  celestial  eye— 
O  let  it  now  to  felon  despots  go, 
N  or  may  in  vain  the  peerless  patriot  die  i 


FROM    THE    ALBANY    CENTIKEL. 

THE  fall  of  Gen.  Hamilton,  with  its  attending  circum- 
stances, is  one  of  the  most  interesting  events  which  the  hu- 
man mind  can  contemplate.  He  was  perhaps  the  most 


(  182) 

finished  character  in  the  world ;  certainly  there  is  not  one 
of  his  contemporaries,  however  great  and  celebrated,  who 
unites  so  many  and  various  qualifications.  Of  his  military 
talents  there  needs  no  other  proof,  than  the  confidence  pla- 
ced in  him  by  Washington,  and  the  sen-ices  in  which  he 
employed  him  during  the  revolutionary  war.  His  wonder- 
ful intellectual  resources,  the  extent  and  acuteness  of  his 
observation,  the  nobleness  of  his  spirit,  qualified  him  to 
command  and  to  conquer.  Had  he  been  called  to  act  on  a 
military  theatre  commensurate  with  the  greatness  of  his  ge- 
nius, the  splendours  of  his  military  character  would  have 
equalled  those  of  the  most  celebrated  heroes.  As  a  States- 
man and  Politician^  he  stands  among  the  first  and  greatest 
the  world1  has  yet  seen.  He  was  the  vital  principle  of  the 
first  administration  under  the  constitution  ;  and  for  the 
establishment  of  that  constitution  we  were  more  indebted  to 
him  than  to  any  other  man.  Without  his  Herculean  efforts, 
it  is  probable  that  it  would  not  have  been  adopted  ;  that  we 
never  would  have  experienced  the  benefits  of  that  union  to 
which  we  owe  our  national  greatness.  It  is  not  improper 
nor  extravagant  praise  to  say,  that  his  Federalist  and  his  de- 
bates in  our  State  Convention,  indicate  an  acquaintance  with 
the  science  of  politics  superior  to  any  thing  that  can  be  found 
in  any  political  work  extant.  The  subject  of  the  Federalist 
was  peculiarly  interesting  here ;  hence,  perhaps,  it  is  not  so 
generally  known  in  Europe  as  it  deserves  to  be.  If  this 
great  work  was  better  known  abroad,  Hamilton  would 
doubtless  be  thought  unrivalled  as  a  political  writer.  In 
estimating  his  political  character,  his  Phocion  and  Camillus 
should  not  be  forgotten. 

As  a  Civilian  and  a  Lawyer •,  his  country  has  not  his 
equal... .nor  is  it  probable,  that  Westminster- Hall  can  boast  of 
hb  superior.  The  wonderful  analytical  powers  of  his  mind, 


(   183  ) 

fitted  him  for  singular  excellence  in  his  profession.  Whafr 
ever  may  be  allowed  to  the  eloquence  of  Mr.  Erskine,  there 
is  not  at  the  English  Bar,  as  far  as  we  are  able  to  describe, 
great  a  man  as  Hamilton. 


fiO 


As  an  Orator,  those  who  knew  him,  and  who  are  acquaint- 
ed with  the  performances  of  the  most  celebrated  public 
speakers  of  ancient  and  modern  times,  will  rank  him  among 
the  most  able  of  those  who  have  ever  exercised  the  arts  of 
convincing  and  persuading.  The  most  admired  performan- 
ces of  Pitt  and  Fox,  the  first  public  speakers  in  Great-Bri- 
tain, do  not  indicate  greater  extent,  more  richness  of  mind, 
or  elegance  of  manner,  than  the  every-day  speeches  of  Ha- 
milton. No  man  possessed  a  more  admirable  power  to  en- 
gage and  preserve  the  attention  of  his  audience.  Such  was 
the  singular  propriety  of  his  elocution,  such  the  fascination 
of  his  manner,  that  after  pouring  forth  the  abundance  of  his 
thoughts  for  many  successive  hours,  every  ear  yet  heard 
him... .every  eye  was  yet  fixed  upon  him.  He  generally  ad- 
dressed himself  only  to  the  understanding :  yet  he  could  ani- 
mate, and  warm,  and  melt.  In  the  pathetic,  he  was  indeed 
always  successful.  Sometimes  he  would  play  a  little,  and 
the  elegance  of  his  pleasantry,  was  not  the  least  part  of  his 
excellence.  Those  whose  opportunities  to  hear  him  were 
frequent,  have  lost  a  pleasure  beyond  all  price.  There  was 
something  in  the  air  and  port  of  Hamilton,  uncommonly 
majestit  and  sublime.  His  manners  and  address  were 
courteous  and  humane.  He  was  well  fitted  t®  be  a  popular 
leader,  and  would  have  dignified  and  graced  a  throne.  He 
was  eloquent  as  Pericles,  amiable  and  brave  as  Francis  I.  or 
Henry  IV.  and  more  enlightened  than  either. 

PERHAPS  no  man's   death  has  ever  occasioned  so   much 
affliction.      When  Washington  died,    Hamilton   was  left. 


(184) 

Our  country  grieves  for  the  loss  of  her  pride,  her  ornamenty 
her  boast,  her  hope,  her  DEFENCE.  But  independent  of 
the  public  calamity,  each  individual  is  personally  afflicted, 
and  feels  that  he  is  deprived  of  something  near  and  dear  to 
him. 

WITH  respect  to  the  motives,  views,  and  expectations  of 
Mr.  Burr,  those  who  are  acquainted  with  the  characters 
and  tempers  of  the  parties,  and  who  have  attentively  consi- 
dered the  correspondence  that  preceded  the  fatal  interview, 
can  have  but  one  opinion.  This  duel  has  occasioned  a  sore 
public  calamity,  and  much  private  affliction.  To  Mr.  Bun- 
it  has  brought  misery  and  ruin.  His  character  now  is  no 
better,  than  it  was  before  the  death  of  General  Hamilton, 
whose  blood  has  not  washed  away  its  stains  !  And  all  office, 
public  honours,  power,  and  trust,  are  now  for  ever  out  of 
the  reach  of  Aaron  Burr ! 


SAME  PAPER. 

SUNDAY  last  was  devoted,  by  the  citizens  of  the  village 
of  Salem,  (N.  Y.)  to  the  grateful  and  soul-approving  purpose 
of  contributing  their  manifestation  of  regret,  at  the  untime- 
ly death,  and  irreparable  loss  of  our  friend  and  first  citizen, 
Gen.  Alexander  Hamilton;  whose  courage  aided  to  found, 
and  whose  wisdom  protected  this  wide-spreading  and  grow- 
ing republic.  For  this  purpose,  a  very  numerous  and  re- 
spectable portion  of  the  inhabitants  of  the  village  attended 
at  the  Meeting-House,  where  the  Rev.  Alexander  Proudfit 
delivered  a  Sermon,  pertinent  to  the  afflicting  occasion, 
from  this  passage  of  Scripture :  "  Now  SAMUEL  was  dead 
u  and  all  Israel  had  lamented  him,  and  buried  him  in  Ramah, 
"  even  in  his  own  city"  In  which  the  inflexible  patriotism, 
and  the  exemplary  social  virtues  of  the  illustrious  deceased, 
v/ere  exhibited  in  a  truy  impressive  manner...as  was  ev'mc- 


£<J  by  the  deep  gloom  which  overspread  the  countenances 

of  the  audience. 

«.« Each  age  to  HIM  its  grateful  dues  shall  pay, 
"  And  join  with  us  to  mourn  his  fun'ral  day."" 


THOUGH  so  much  has  already  appeared  in  the  papers  re- 
lative to  the  death  of  Gen.  Hamilton,  we  cannot  deny  our- 
selves the  pleasure  of  republishing  the  following  handsome 
paragraph  from  the  Palladium,  a  democratic  paper,  printed 
in  Frankfort,  Kentucky.  It  is  introductory  to  a  compen- 
dious statement  of  the  causes  which  led  to  the  dreadful  ca- 
tastrophe....^:?;. U.  S. 

"  THE  death  of  Gen.  Hamilton,  who  lately  fell  in  a  duel 
with  Col.  Burr,  has  excited  more  public  sensibility,  than 
any  circumstance  which  has  occurred  since  the  death  of 
Washington.  The  finer  feelings  of  the  soul,  which  it  has 
awakened,  appear  to  have  extinguished  the  resentment  of 
party ;  and  if  this  has  been  the  effect  upon  his  political  op- 
ponents, how  inadequate  must  be  the  power  of  language  to 
describe  the  sensations  so  afflicting  an  event  must  produce  in 
the  bosoms  of  his  friends  ?  His  transcendent  talents,  ac- 
tively exerted  for  a  number  of  years  in  favour  of  federal  po- 
litics, pointed  him  out  as  the  most  distinguished  leader  of  the 
party — by  whom  his  loss  is,  no  doubt,  very  sincerely  deplor- 
ed. Indeed,  it  is  irreparable." 

FROM  THE  BOSTON  CENTINEL. 


Middlesex,  August  13,  1804. 
MR.  RUSSELL, 

THE  newspapers  have  lately  been  filled  with  accounts  of 
the  sad  event  at  New- York,  and  with  characteristic  traits 


(  186  ) 

of  the  illustrious  victim  therein :  These  publications  are  cal- 
culated to  do  much  good  in  society.  They  have  developed 
the  character,  services,  and  patriotism,  of  a  citizen,  whose 
lame  has  been  assailed  by  every  "  puny  whipster"  that 
could  guide  a  pen.  Nor  has  even  the  grave,  which,  in  the 
magnanimous,  always  bars  the  gates  of  enmity,  shielded  the 
Patriot  from  the  upbraidings  of  ignorance  and  vileness.  The 
deceased  is  still  reproached  with  incivism,  with  ambition. 
Let  us  examine  those  reproaches  : — -His  incivism  has  been 
displayed  in  his  being  one  of  the  framers  of  the  present  con- 
stitution of  the  United  States ;  and,  though  a  bold  word, 
the  MOST  ABLE  and  indefatigable  advocate  for  its  adop- 
tion and  execution.  To  the  charge  of  ambition,  let  WASH- 
^INGTON  speak  :  That  Washington,  whom  the  democrats 
pretended  to  venerate  j  and  whom  they  dare  not  cease  to 
eulogize  in  their  toasts,  and  their  rhapsodies :  That  Wash- 
ington whose  discriminating  talents  were  ever  acknowledg- 
ed ;  who  was  honest  as  independent,  and  independent  as 
inflexible. 

LET  every  citizen  who  desires  to  see  the  truth ;  let  every 
one  who  can  read,  read  the  following  extract  of  a  letter  from 
General  Washington  to  Mr.  Adams,  when  President  of  the 
United  States,  CIVIS, 

GENERAL  WASHINGTON  TO  PRESIDENT    ADAMS. 

;,  ,      "  Mount-Vernon,  Sept.  25,  1798. 

"  IT  is  an  invidious  task,  at  all  times,  to  draw  compari- 
sons, and  I  shall  avoid  it  as  much  as  possible  ;  but  I  have 
no  hesitation  in  declaring,  that  if  the  public  is  to  be  deprived 
of  the  services  of  Col.  Hamilton  in  the  military  line,  the 
post  he  was  destined  to  fill  will  not  easily  be  supplied.. .and 
that  this  is  the  sentiment  of  the  public,  I  think  I  may  ven- 


(  187  ) 

tare  to  pronounce.  Although  Col.  Hamilton  has  never 
acted  in  the  character  of  a  general  officer,  yet  his  opportuni- 
ties, as  the  principal  and  most  confidential  aid  of  the  Com- 
mander in  Chief,  afforded  him  the  means  of  viewing  every 
thing  on  a  larger  scale  than  those  who  had  only  divisions 
and  brigades  to  attend  to  ;  who  knew  nothing  of  the  cor- 
respondences of  the  Commander  in  Chief,  or  of  the  various 
orders  to,  or  transactions  with,  the  general  staff  of  the  army. 
These  advantages,  and  his  having  served  with  usefulness  in 
the  old  Congress,  in  the  General  Convention,  and  having  fil- 
led one  of  the  most  important  departments  of  government 
with  acknowledged  abilities  and  integrity,  have  placed  him 
on  high  ground  ;  and  made  him  a  conspicuous  character  in 
the  United  States,  and  even  in  Europe.  To  these,  as  a 
matter  of  no  small  consideration,  may  be  added,  that  as  a 
lucrative  practice  in  the  line  of  his  profession  is  his  most 
certain  dependence,  the  inducement  to  relinquish  it  must  in 
some  degree  be  commensurate.  By  some  he  is  considered 
as  an  ambitious  man,  and  therefore  a  dangerous  one.  That 
he  is  ambitions  I  shall  readily  grant,  but  it  is  of  that  laudable 
kind,  which  prompts  a  man  to  excel  in  whatever  he  takes  in 
hand. 

"  HE  is  enterprising...quick  in  his  perceptions—and  his 
judgment  intuitively  great  :  qualities  essential  to  a  great 
military  character ;  and  therefore  I  repeat,  that  his  loss  will  be 
irreparable* 

"  GEORGE  WASHINGTON." 


THE  affectionate  and  elegant  tribute  from  4  Jaques,'  to 
the  memory  of  Hamilton,  is  entitled  to  a  much  higher  place 
in  literary  estimation,  than  those  vulgar  wailings  which  usu- 


(   188  ) 

ally  deform  our  Gazettes,  and  '  petrify  one,  in  a  single  stan- 
za.*— Dennis. 

FROM   THE  PORT   FOLIO. 

REFLECTIONS  IN  SOLITUDE, 
JAQUES  ON  HAMILTON. 

I.v  solitude,  though  Rumour's  aspen  tongue, 
May  ring  upon  the  ear  her  changing  notes, 
Yet  eft,  like  fleeting  forms  which  Fancy  calls 
To  build  the  morning  dreams  which  lovers  know. 
They  pass  away,  and  busy  Mem'ry  bears 
Eut  faint  impression  of  the  idle  sounds  t 
Yet  ^ft,  when  Silence  sleeps  upon  the  leaves, 
Intrusive  Rumour  wakes  me  from  my  dreams 
With  tales  so  mournful,  and  so  oft  repeated, 
That  e'en  in  solitude  I  may  not  choose 
But  sorrow,  and  the  heart,  responsive  still, 
Murmurs  the  melancholy  tale  to  air  ! 
Oh  t  then,  to  startled  Fancy's  sickened  vision,   . 
The  morning  music  of  the  robin  dies, 
The  brook's  pure  waters  stagnate  in  their  course, 
And  the  green  foliage  of  the  lofty  woods 
Assumes  a  sickly  cast.     Suspicion  then 
Steals  to  my  ear,  and  whispers  me  to  shun 
The  harmless  peasant  lurking  near  my  haunts, 
Intent  on  blood.     Contagion  too  takes  wing 
From  crowded  streets,  and  flying  on  the  breeze, 
Rears  many  a  sod,  and  rudely  sculptured  stone 
Within  the  grave-yard  of  the  village  church  ! 
Rumour !  with  all  thy  hundred  busy  tongues, 
Thou  can 'st  not  tell  a  tale  so  sorrowful 
To  pierce  my  country's  heart,  as  that  which  late 
The  sighs  of  millions  breath'd  upon  my  ear  ! 
Oft  may  a  parent,  while  his  orphans  mourn, 
Sleep  with  his  fathers  in  the  mouldering  tomb; 
Yet  kind  Oblivion  soon  will  chase  the  tear 
From  swelling  lids  ;  for  Pleasure's  gaudy  beam 
Dries  Sorrow's  source,  as  I  have  often  seen 
The  vernal  brook  escape  from  summer  suns. 
Humanity  has  ceaseless  cause  to  weep, 
For  *  man  was  made  to  mown.'     So  sang  the  bard, 


(  189  ) 

Whom,  wh«n  the  Muses  left  their  sacred  groves, 

To  claim  the  mortal  who  had  stol'n  the'ir  lyre, 

They  found  on  Scotia's  music-gifted  hills 

Warbling  a  song  of  sweetest  minstrelsy — 

While  round  his  plough  the  wondering  peasants  flock'd- 

Athens  her  orator— her  C&sar*  Rome 

Have  mourned  :    Her  noble  Chatham,  Albion  mourns, 

And  Sparta's  honours  gather  round  the  grave 

Beneath  whose  turf  Leonidas  was  laid. 

These  men  were  great,  and  good,  and  merited 

The  fairest  honours,  and  the  warmest  tears. 

Thou  too,  my  country  !  hast  a  debt  to  pay, 

Of  which  Peruvian  mines  were  poor  to  rid  thee  ! 

No  !  let  thy  lips  dwell  ceaseless  on  the  name-.. 

Let  thy  warm  tears  bedew  the  yet  green  grave, 

And  let  the  laurels,  which  thy  love  may  plant, 

Thicken  around  the  fame  of  HAMILTON. 

For  he  was  thine,  and  only  thine,  my  country  ! 

Thy  fields  attest  his  valour  in  thy  cause  ; 

Thy  senate  hung  in  rapture  on  his  lips, 

Which  poured  as  sweet  a  stream  of  eloquence 

As  Athens  knew.     Full  many  a  sleepless  night 

His  thorny  pillow  own'd  the  sighs  and  tears 

Which  heaved  and  streamed  for  thee,  and  thee  alone  1 

And  in  that  deed,  which  laid  his  bosom  bare, 

As  Honour  whisper'd  him,  he  lent  his  ear, 

And,  fancying,  heard  his  country  claim  his  life  ! 

Spirit  of  Genius  !   Oh  !  had  I  that  glow 

Of  intellect,  which  late  illum'd  thy  soul, 

Andprov'd  Promethean  fire  no  fabled  song  : 

I  then  should  muse,  for  friendship's  partial  ears, 

Strains  not  unworthy  of  thy  bright'ning  fame  ! 

Yet  to  thy  country  still  that  fame  is  dear, 

And  HE,  who  form'd  thee  good  as  thou  wert  great, 

May  prompt  some  pen  to  sketch  each  glorious  deed 

That  mark'd  thy  days.     Then  Shall  th'  historic  page 

Record  thee  as  thou  wert.     Thy  val'rous  acts 

Shall  lead  the  youthful  warrior  to  the  field, 

Who  still  shall  copy  thee,  and  stay  his  sword 

When  Mercy  sues.     In  academic  shades, 

When  youth  shall  dwell  upon  that  eloquence, 

Which  Greece  alone  had  rivalled,  he  shall  feel 


(  190  ) 

Ambition  lightning  all  her  glowing  fires— 
His  heart  shall  throb — his  feeble  pulses  swell— 
His  bright  eye  kindle,  and,  with  rapid  glance,. 
Dart  on  the  page  devoted  to  thy  fame  ; 
And  as  he  gazes  on  the  envied  height, 
Which  thou  hadst  early  reach'd,  he  yet  may  deem 
It  well  beEtting  his  advent'rous  flight 
To  seat  him  there.     Some  youthful  Solon  too, 
Whom  fate  may  lead  to  build  an  empire  up, 
Shall  gather  wisdom  from  thy  lum'nous  mind, 
Which  saw  its  country,  even  at  its  birth, 
Fast  sinking  to  the  tomb  where  states  repose, 
And,  nobly  rescuing  it  from  Faction's  grasp, 
Pointed  the  path  to  Honour  and  to  Fame. 
The  page  of  Hist'ry,  too,  with  pride  shall  tell, 
That  when  the  treasures  of  thy  country  lay 
Within  thy  easy  grasp,  they  could  not  tempt 
Thy  honest  soul.     Oh  !   it  shall  proudly  say, 
•  Lo  !  his  grey  hairs  announc'd  the  hour  of  rest. 
Yet  Poverty  still  claim'd  him  as  her  child  !' 
The  simple  narrative,  which  Truth  shall  tell, 
Shall  prove  thy  brightest,  fairest  eulogy  ! 
Time,  as  he  steals  along,  and  ceaseless  yield* 
Fictitious  greatness  to  Oblivion's  tomb, 
Shall  own  thy  fame  superior  to  his  power, 
And  feel  the  splendour  that  encircles  thee  ^ 
The  foes  of  Virtue,  HAMILTON  !  were  thine, 
And  thine  her  dearest  friends  !  She  lesson'd  thee, 
When  Pleasure's  syrens  wanton'd  in  thy  path, 
To  fix  thy  steady  eye  on  Honour's  form, 
And  deem  the  hours  mispent,  which  found  thee  not 
Thy  country 's  Mentor  ;  and  she  promis'd  thee 
The  sweetest  recompense  for  all  thy  toils, 
Which  Virtue  gives,  and  sculslike  thine  desire  ; 
For  know,  when  truth  shall  dissipate  the  gloom, 
Which  faction  thickened  to  obscure  thy  fame, 
That  thou  shalt  find,  wherever  Honour  lives, 
Hearts  warm,  lips  busy,  and  remembrance  prompt, 
To  speak  qf  one,  whose  bosom  knew  no  guile. 

JAQUES. 

• 

JtND   OF  NO.  IV. 


A  COLLECTION,  &c. 


N°.  V. 


INTERESTING  LETTER. 

THE  following  highly  interesting  letter  from  General 
Pinckney,  it  must  be  recollected,  comes  from  a  gentleman 
of  the  most  liberal  mind,  a  soldier  of  the  nicest  honour,  and 
of  tried  and  unquestionable  bravery.  This  consideration 
will,  we  are  sure,  give  to  his  sentiments  on  the  subject  of 
duelling,  the  greatest  possible  weight  throughout  the  com- 
munity. Should  the  death  of  Hamilton  be  the  cause  of 
bringing  into  merited  disgrace  the  disorganizing  sentiment, 
that  "  a  gentleman's  honour  is  under  the  protection  of  his 
&wn  arm"  and  that  instead  of  appealing  to  the  laws,  he  is 
to  look  for  vengeance  to  private  force  j  and  if  it  shall  be 
the  means  of  scouting  from  our  country  the  absurd,  unjust* 
and  murderous  practice  of  taking  life  itself  for  even  imagin- 
ary offences  to  imaginary  honour  —  "  then  indeed  will  not 
a  Hamilton  have  died  in  vain." 

AT  a  Meeting  of  the  Standing  Committee  of  the  Society  of 
the  Cincinnati  of  the  State  of  New-  York,  on  Wednesday, 
5th  of  Sept.  1804  : 

THE  President  presented  a  letter  received  by  him  from 
Major  General  Charles  Cotcsworth  Pinckney,  Vice-President- 
General  of  the  Society  of  the  Cincinnati,  which  was  read 
and  attentively  considered  —  Whereupon,  resolved  unani- 
mously, That  this  Committee  highly  approve  the  sentiments 

2  G 


(192) 

expressed  in  the  said  letter,  and  that  the  Secretary  fortlv 
with  cause  the  same  to  be  published. 

THE  President  also  presented  a  letter  from  Mrs.  Hamil- 
ton, which  was  also  read — Resolved  unanimously,  that  the 
Secretary  cause  the  same  to  be  published. 

WM.  POPHAM,  Sec'ry. 

Charleston,  S.  C.  August  18,  1804* 
SIR, 

WITH  deep  affliction,  I  received  the  account  of  our  irre- 
parable loss  by  the  death  of  our  late  President-General. 
This  deplorable  event  has  been  sensibly  felt  and  lamented  in 
this  part  of  the  union,  even  by  those  who  were  not  person- 
ally acquainted  with  him,  and  who  did  not  coincide  with 
him  in  politics.  By  me,  who  have  witnessed  his  calm  intre- 
pidity and  heroic  valour,  on  trying  occasions,  and  was  ac- 
quainted with  his  transcendent  abilities  and  amiable  quali- 
ties, and  honoured  with  his  particular  friendship,  his  loss  is 
most  poignantly  felt,  and  his  memory  will  be  ever  most  af- 
fectionately revered. 

Is  there  no  way  of  abolishing,  throughout  the  Union,  this 
absurd  and  barbarous  custom,  to  the  observance  of  which 
he  fell  a  victim  ?  Duelling  is  no  criterion  of  bravery  ;  for  I 
have  seen  cowards  fight  duels,  and  I  am  convinced  real 
courage  may  often  be  better  shown  in  the  refusal  than  in 
the  acceptance  of  a  challenge.  If  the  Society  of  Cincinna- 
ti were  to  declare  their  abhorrence  of  this  practice,  and  the 
determination  of  all  their  members  to  discourage  it  as  far  as 
they  had  influence,  and  on  no  account  either  to  send  or  accept 
a  challenge,  it  might  tend  to  annul  this  odious  custom,  and 
would  be  a  tribute  of  respect  to  the  sentiments  and  memory 


(  193  ) 

f/Four  late  illustrious  Chief.  If  the  State  Society  of  New- 
York  should  coincide  with  me  in  opinion,  I  should  be  glad 
to  have  their  sentiments,  how  best  to  carry  it  into  execu- 
tion;  whether  by  submitting  it  to  a  meeting  of  the  General 
Society  at  New- York,  Philadelphia,  or  Baltimore,  or  by 
referring  the  matter  at  once  to  the  different  State  Societies, 
for  their  consideration. 

I  HAVE  this  day  received  your  favour  of  the  25th  of  July, 
and  am  much  oblj-ged  to  the  State  Society,  and  to  yourself, 
for  it.  With  sentiments  of  great  respect,  I  have  the  honour- 
to  be, 

Your  most  obedient  servant, 

CHARLES  COTESWORTH  PINCKNEY, 

V.  P.  G.  S.  C, 

Col.  W.  S.  SMITH,  President  of  the  New- York 
State  Society  of  the  Cincinnati. 


THE  following  letter  from  Mrs.  Hamilton  will  excite  the 
sympathies  of  those  who  feel  for  her  individual  loss,  and  in 
it  lament  a  great  national  calamity. 

Albany,  August  11,  1804. 
SIR, 

To  the  distress  of  a  heart  so  deeply  afflicted  as  mine, 
from  the  irreparable  loss  of  a  most  amiable  and  affectionate 
husband,  I  trust  the  respectable  society  in  which  you  preside, 
will  impute  the  delay  of  an  acknowledgment  for  their  con- 
solatory letter,  couched  in  terms  that  evince  their  sympathy 
eminates  from  the  heart. 

ALTHOUGH  great  mitigation  of  that  affliction,  with  which 
I  am  so  severely  depressed,  can  only  be  hoped  from  the 


(  194  ) 

mercies  of  the  Divine  Being,  in  whose  dispensations  it  is 
the  duty  of  his  creatures  humbly  and  devoutly  to  acquiesce  ; 
yet,  the  wounded  heart  derives  a  degree  of  consolation  from 
the  tenderness  with  which  its  lot  is  bewailed,  by  the  virtuous, 
the  wise,  and  humane — and  also  from  that  high  honour  and 
respect  with  which  the  memory  of  the  dear  deceased  has 
been  commemorated  by  them,  and  those  contemplated  in 
the  resolutions  of  the  Society  of  the  Cincinnati,  transmitted 
by  you,  and  for  which  you,  Sir,  will  be  pleased  to  convey 
my  warmest  thanks  to  that  respectable  body. 

I  RECIPROCATE  with  sensibility  your  and  their  recommen- 
dation of  me  to  the  Divine  care  and  protection — May  they 
enjoy  it,  and  without  alloy. 

I  am,  Sir,  with  great  respect, 

Your  obedient  servant, 

E.  HAMILTON. 

To  WILLIAM  S.  SMITH,  Esq. 


PROM    THE    ALBANY    CENTINEL^ 

A  BRIEF  REVIEW 

OF  THE  PUBLIC  LIFE  AND  WRITINGS  OF 

GENERAL  HAMILTON. 

WHILE  the  public  are  everywhere  lamenting  the  untimely 
fate  of  this  great  and  excellent  character,  and  bestowing  on 
his  memory  the  deepest  expressions  of  veneration  and  grati- 
tude, I  have  found  a  melancholy  but  tender  consolation  in 
endeavouring  to  recalto  memory  the  principal  actions  of  his 


(195) 

illustrious  life.  His  efforts  in  the  public  service  were  dishi* 
terested,  unremitting,  and  manly  ;  and  his  views  the  most 
penetrating  and  comprehensive.  It  is  from  a  review  of  his 
political  life  and  writings  that  we  perceive  and  feel  the  more 
strongly,  the  wonderful  extent,  strength,  and  activity  of  his 
mind,  and  the  ardour  and  purity  of  a  heart  devoted  to  the 
public  welfare. 

GENERAL  HAMILTON  entered  the  army  in  the  beginning 
of  the  American  war,  and  while  he  was  still  a  youth.  He 
was  soon  taken  into  General  Washington's  family  as  one  of 
his  aids,  and  with  the  rank  of  Lieutenant-Colonel.  He  \was 
with  the  Commander  in  Chief  in  that  character  at  the  battle 
of  Monmouth,  in  June,  1778,  General  Washington,  in  one 
of  his  official  letters  to  Congress  at  that  time,  says,  that 
Lieutenant  Col.  Hamilton  was  "  well  informed  of  his  senti^ 
ments  on  every  point ;"  and  he  has  since  declared  in  writing, 
that  "  Col.  Hamilton  was  his  principal  and  most  confidential 
aid."  He  commanded  the  American  detachment  that  car- 
ried by  assault  one  of  the  enemy's  redoubts  at  the  siege  of 
York-Town,  in  the  evening  of  the  14th  October,  1781.  This 
was  a  small  but  brilliant  affair,  and  noted  at  the  time  for  the 
rapidity  with  which  it  was  conducted,  and  the  humanity 
that  crowned  the  victors. 

THE  capture  of  Cornwallis  was  the  last  great  act  of  the 
revolutionary  war,  and  Col.  Hamilton  immediately  turned 
his  attention  to  the  profession  of  the  law.  But  the  duties  of 
that  profession  were  always  with  him  a  secondary  object, 
and  he  immediately  entered  upon  that  course  of  action  in 
the  civil  department  of  government,  in  which  he  was  de- 
stined by  providence  to  act  a  part  so  eminently  useful  and 
glorious.  In  July,  1 782,  he  was  chosen  a  member  of  Congress 
by  the  Legislature  of  this  state,  and  in  the  ensuing  session 


(  196) 

fcf  the  winter  of  1783,  the  proceedings  of  Congress  were 
stamped  with  a  new  and  striking  character.  This  is  visible 
to  every  observer,  who  will  take  the  pains  of  perusing  and 
comparing  their  journals.  Their  reports  and  resolutions 
were  luminous  and  masterly,  both  for  matter  and  style.  Con- 
gress made  new,  vigorous,  and  persevering  efforts,  to  give 
the  confederation  all  the  force  of  which  that  languid  consti- 
tution was  susceptible,  by  endeavouring  to  command  re- 
sources competent  to  rear  up  and  establish  the  prostrate  cre- 
dit of  the  union.  It  would  not,  however,  be  just  or  deco- 
rous to  impute  this  renewed  energy,  this  unusual  discern- 
ment and  anxiety  which  were  conspicuous  in  the  national 
councils,  exclusively  to  the  presence  of  any  particular  mem- 
ber. But  this  much  is  certain,  that  Mr.  Hamilton  took  an 
early  and  distinguished  lead  in  all  the  prominent  measures  of 
the  session.  He  moved  the  resolution,  pressing  the  states  to 
comply  with  the  money  requisitions,  "  in  order  to  render  jus- 
tice to  the  public  creditors ;  "  and  in  this  he  early  announced 
that  great  ruling  principle  of  probity  and  policy,  which  he 
pursued  through  the  whole  course  of  his  political  life.  He 
was  chairman  of  the  committee  which  reported  a  resolution 
to  provide  a  sinking  fund  to  pay  the  national  debt,  and  which 
also  reported  the  answer  of  Congress  to  the  reasons  of  the 
Rhode-Island  Legislature  for  rejecting  the  five  per  cent,  im- 
post. This  answer  (whoever  may  be  its  author)  is  excellent 
for  the  conclusiveness  of  its  reasoning,  and  the  moderation 
of  its  temper.  We  find  him  a  member  of  another  commit- 
tee which  made  an  interesting  report  on  the  non-compliance 
of  the  states  with  the  requisitions  of  Congress,  on  the  con- 
sequent failure  of  revenue,  and  on  the  necessity  of  vigorous 
and  effectual  measures  to  liquidate  and  fund  the  debt,  and 
retrieve  the  credit  of  the  nation.  And  he  was  one  of  the 
committee  of  three,  which,  in  April  1T83,  reported  an  ad- 
clress  froril  Congress  to  the  several  states,  calling  upon  them 


(  197) 

By  all  the  motives  of  duty,  interest,  and  gratitude,  to  vest  Con* 
gress  with  the  power  to  collect  a  general  impost,  as  the  only 
means  by  which  they  could  discharge  their  sacred  engage- 
ments. This  address  is  distinguished  for  argument  the  most 
forcible,  and  eloquence  the  most  impressive.  And  indeed  the 
state  papers  generally  of  this  interesting  session,  are  models  of 
composition,  and  specimens  of  research,  of  talents,  of  probity, 
and  patriotism,  which  reflect  the  highest  honour  on  our  coun- 
try. To  deny  to  Mr.  Hamilton  his  full  share  of  agency  in  pro- 
ducing them,  would  be  unjust,  and  I  shall  leave  it  to  the  good 
sense  of  every  reader  to  draw  their  own  conclusions  from 
the  facts  which  I  have  stated.  It  ought,  however,  to  be  re- 
collected, that  a  member  from  Virginia,  and  who  now  fills 
the  department  of  state,  and  who  is  well  known  and  admir- 
ed, if  not  for  the  energy,  at  least  for  the  acuteness  and  ele- 
gance of  his  mind,  was  at  this  time  an  associated  memjper 
with  Gen.  Hamilton  in  the  business,  and  probably  in  the  la- 
bours and  honours  of  the  session. 

\  •:•'•>  ':•'.    »',.;     •*.   !  '.'.?&    '  .     *'•'•    *  » 

BUT  there  were  other  proceedings  in  that  session  which 
served  to  develope  Mr.  Hamilton's  peculiar  disposition  and 
character.  He  was  chairman  of  the  committee  which  intro- 
duced a  resolution  full  of  gratitude  for  the  disinterested  and 
useful  services  of  the  Baron  de  Steuben ;  and  he  was  the 
mover  of  the  resolution  for  disbanding  the  army,  and  which 
was  expressive  of  the  well-founded  confidence  of  Congress 
in  the  good  sense  and  order  of  the  troops,  by  allowing  them 
a  privilege,  I  believe  totally  unheard  of  before,  that  they 
take  their  arms  with  them.  He  appears  also  at  that  day  to 
have  entertained  those  sentiments  which  he,  on  a  recent  oc- 
casion, so  eloquently  enforced,  respecting  the  full  disclo- 
sure and  free  circulation  of  the  true  character  and  conduct 
of  men  in  public  trust,  for  he  seconded  the  motion,  stating, 
u  That  it  was  of  importance  in  tvery  free  QQimtrij\  that  the 


(  198) 

tidiiduct  and  sentiments  of  those  to  whom  the  direction  of  public 
affairs  -was  committed,  should  be  publicly  known,  and  that  in 
future  the  doors  of  Congress  ought  to  be  opened,  unless 
otherwise  specially  ordered." 

AFTER  the  conclusion  of  this  session  of  Congress,  Mr. 
Hamilton  returned  to  the  practice  of  his  profession,  and  soon 
drew  to  himself  a  general  attention  and  applause,  by  his  ta- 
lents and  eloquence  at  the  Bar.  His  mind,  however,  was 
still  directed  to  the  progress  and  tendency  of  public  mea- 
sures. After  the  evacuation  of  New-York,  the  conduct  of 
many  of  our  citizens  was  intemperate  and  violent,  and  it 
gave  currency  to  the  pernicious  doctrine,  that  the  inhabitants 
of  the  southern  district  who  had  remained  within  the  ene- 
my's lines,  were  not  entitled  to  the  privileges  of  citizens, 
and  that  they  were  in  fact  aliens,  subject  to  such  penalties  and 
disabilities  as  the  legislature  might,  in  their  discretion,  im- 
pose. To  meet  and  overthrow  this  opinion,  full  of  injustice 
and  perfidy,  and  propagated  under  the  influence  of  angry 
and  malevolent  passions,  Mr.  Hamilton  published  in  the 
winter  of  1784,  his  two  pamphlets,  under  the  signature  of 
Phocion,  and  addressed  to  the  considerate  citizens  of  New- 
York.  In  these  he  stated,  and  recommended  with  ardour 
and  with  energy,  the  genuine  obligations  resulting  from  the 
treaty  of  peace ;  that  no  portion  of  our  fellow-citizens  were 
disfranchised,  but  that  all  were  entitled  to  the  full  benefit  of 
equal  and  impartial  laws ;  that  a  perfidious  evasion  of  the 
treaty,  and  measures  of  persecution  and  revenge,  would 
disgrace  the  cause  of  liberty  and  the  spirit  of  whigism, 
which  was  "  generous,  humane,  beneficent,  and  just." 
These  pamphlets  carried  with  them  universal  conviction, 
and  put  the  contrary  opinion  and  the  spirit  it  was  enkindling, 
to  disgrace  and  silence.  The  last  pamphlet  of  Phocion  is 
in  a  particular  manner  marked  with  that  analysis  of  investi- 


(  199  ) 

gntion  ;  that  deep  basis  of  inquiry  and  logical  deduction, 
which  were  peculiar  to  its  illustrious  author. 

IN  1 786,  Mr.  Hamilton  was  chosen  a  member  of  Assem- 
bly for  the  city  of  New-York,  and  the  ensuing  session  he 
brought  forward  a  great  measure,  dictated  by  policy  and  pa- 
triotism, and  which  required  his  talents  and  firmness  to 
maintain.  I  allude  to  the  bill  for  acceding,  on  the  part 
of  this  state,  to  the  assumed  independence  of  Vermont.  We 
were  then  at  an  awful  crisis  in  our  national  affairs,  without 
a  government  to  protect  us,  and  just  on  the  eve  of  a  momen- 
tous experiment  to  effect  one.  Vermont  was  in  fact  inde- 
pendent, but  she  was  not  confederated  ;  she  was  a  stranger, 
and  might  soon  become  an  enemy  to  the  Union.  This  sU 
tuation  was  delicate  and  alarming,  and  increased  the  anxie- 
ties of  this  great  patriot,  who  then  declared,  in  a  speech  un- 
'usually  solemn  and  impressive,  u  That  he  was  in  the  habit 
of  viewing  the  situation  of  this  country  as  replete  widi  diffi- 
culties and  surrounded  with  danger."  The  bill  was  opposed 
by  counsel  in  behalf  of  such  of  our  citizens  as  claimed  lands 
within  that  jurisdiction.  Mr.  Hamilton,  in  a  prompt  and 
masterly  manner,  vindicated  his  proceeding,  and  showed 
'  that  the  state  was  under  no  obligation  from  the  principles  of 
the  social  compact,  whatever  they  might  choose  to  do  from 
generosity  or  policy,  to  indemnify  our  citizens  for  losses 
sustained  by  a  violent  dismemberment  of  a  part  of  the  body 
politic,  which  they  had  not  the  power  to  prevent  or  reclaim. 
This  speech,  and  the  one  in  favour  of  the  cession  of  the  five 
per  cent,  impost  to  the  United  States,  were  models  of  sena- 
torial argument  and  eloquence,  which  were  greatly  and  just- 
ly admired  at  the  time,  and  contributed  in  no  small  degree 
to  his  increasing  fame  and  importance.  In  the  last  speech 
he  took  an  enlarged  view  of  the  history  and  state  of  the 
Union,  and  undertook  to  demonstrate  that  there  was  no 

2  D 


(200) 

Constitutional  impediment  to  the  adoption  of  the  billj  that 
there  was  no  danger  to  be  apprehended  to  the  public  liberty 
from  giving  the  power  in  question  to  the  United  States  ;  that 
in  the  views  of  revenue  the  measure  was  indispensable,  and 
that  this  country  would  soon  be  involved  in  misery  and  ruin, 
if  our  national  affairs  were  left  much  longer  to  float  in  the 
chaos  in  which  they  were  then  involved.  He  at  that  time 
made  a  bold,  frank,  and  affecting  appeal  to  the  uniform  te- 
nour  of  his  life  and  character.  "  If  in  the  public  stations  I 
have  filled,  I  have  acquitted  myself  with  zeal,  fidelity,  and 
disinterestedness ;  if  in  the  private  walk  of  life  my  conduct 
has  been  unstained  by  any  dishonourable  act,  I  have  a  right 
to  the  confidence  of  those  to  whom  I  address  myself." 

DURING  'this  session  of  our  Legislature,  Mr.  Hamilton 
was  chosen  one  of  the  three  members  to  represent  this  state  in 
the  General  Convention  at  Philadelphia,  and  he  devoted  the 
summer  of  1787  to  a  faithful  discharge  of  that  important 
trust.  A  revolution  in  our  national  government  was  now 
at  hand,  and  no  man  of  strength  and  maturity,  and  whose 
breast  was  warmed  with  one  spark  of  generous  sensation,  but 
felt  for  the  perilous  situation  of  the  country,  and  contem- 
plated with  reverence  the  obligations  it  created.  Mr.  Ha- 
milton was  not  of  a  nature  to  shrink  from  the  crisis.  He 
took  a  great  and  splendid  share  in  the  responsibilities  of  the 
day,  and  by  writing,  and  speaking,  and  acting,  he  acquitted 
himself  in  a  manner  that  ensured  the  admiration  of  his  con- 
temporaries, and  will  transmit  his  fame  to  posterity. 

His  particular  services  in  the  Convention  are  not  accurate- 
ly known  to  the  public,  as  the  doors  of  that  body  were  clos- 
ed, and  their  journals  have  never  been  published.  I  will 
take  the  liberty,  however,  of  mentioning  a  remark  once 
made  by  a  very  respectable  member  of  the  Convention  from 


(201   ) 

a  neighbouring  state,  and  leave  those  who  can  correct  me  to 
appreciate  it  as  it  may  deserve.  He  said,  that  if  the  Con- 
stitution did  not  succeed  on  trial,  Mr.  Hamilton  was  less  res- 
ponsible for  that  result  than  any  other  member,  for  he  fully 
and  frankly  pointed  out  to  the  Convention  what  he  appre,- 
hended  were  the  infirmities  to  which  it  was  liable :  And  that 
if  it  answered  the  fond  expectations  of  the  public,  the  com- 
munity would  be  more  indebted  to  Mr.  Hamilton  than  to 
any  other  member;  for  after  its  essential  outlines  were 
agreed  to,  he  laboured  the  most  indefatigably  to  heal  those 
infirmities,  and  to  guard  against  the  evils  to  which  they 
might  expose  it. 

AFTER  the  publication  of  the  Constitution,  Mr.  Hamil- 
ton, in  concert  with  Mr.  Jay  and  Mr.  Madison,  commenc- 
ed the  Federalist  ;  a  series  of  Essays  under  the  signature 
of  PuUius,  addressed  to  the  people  of  this  state,  in  favour 
of  the  adoption  of  the  Constitution.  These  papers  first 
made  their  appearance  in  the  daily  prints  early  in  Novem- 
ber, 1787,  and  the  work  was  not  concluded  until  a  short 
time  previous  to  the  meeting  of  the  State  Convention  in 
June,  1788.  It  may  be  difficult  to  point  out  with  precisiorj 
the  part  that  Mr.  Hamilton  took  in  the  composition  of  these 
Essays*.  It  is,  however,  well  understood,  that  Mr.  Jay 
took  but  a  very  inconsiderable  share  in  the  work  \  that  Mr. 
Madison  took  a  deeper  and  more  useful  part,  and  that  Mr, 
Hamilton  was  the  principal  author,  and  wrote  at  least  three- 
fourths,  of  the  numbers.  This  work  is  not  to  be  classe4 
among  those  ephemeral  productions  which  are  calculated  to 
produce  a  party  purpose,  and  when  that  purpose  is  answer-* 
ed,  to  expire  for  ever.  It  is  a  profound  and  learned  disqui- 
sition on  the  principles  of  a  federal  representative  govern-* 

*  A  key  to  the  several  writers  is  in  our  possession  -~Edit. 


(  202  ) 

ment,  and  combines  equally  an  ardent  attachment  to  public 
liberty,  and  an  accurate  discernment  of  the  dangers  result- 
ing from  an  excessive  jealousy  of  power,  in  those  unsound 
and  unskilful  institutions,  under  which  it  has  perished  in  al- 
most every  age  and  nation.  This  work  will  no  doubt  en- 
dure as  long  as  any  of  the  republican  establishments  of  this 
country,  on  which  it  is  such  a  luminous  and  elegant  com- 
mentary. The  first  volume  discusses  these  three  interesting 
points.. ..The  utility  of  the  union.. ..The  defects  of  the  Con- 
federation.... And  the  necessity  of  a  government  as  energetic, 
at  least,  as  the  one  proposed  ;  and  this  I  regard  as  the  most  fi- 
nished part  of  the  work,  considering  the  cogent  and  peculiarly 
affecting  manner  in  which  these  propositions  are  surveyed,  il- 
lustrated, and  enforced.  The  Federalist  was  translated  and 
published  in  France  by  Buisson,  just  as  that  people  were  be- 
ginning  to  run  the  mad  career  of  their  revolution.  It  was 
spoken  of  in  very  high  terms,  although  one  of  the  Paris  Ga- 
zettes thought  some  parts  of  it  had  rather  an  aristocratical 
tendency.  Alas  \  for  the  cause  of  temperate  and  genuine  li- 
berty, if  the  leaders  of  that  revolution  had  not  been  vision- 
ary philosophists,  prostituted  infidels,  and  blood-thirsty  de- 
magogu€s>  the  mild  light  of  this  western  star  might  possibly 
have  rescued  that  people  from  the  tempestuous  fury  of  the 
passions  ;  from  a  constant  vibration  between  scenes  of  folly, 
and  scenes  of  horror,  and  conducted  them  to  peace,  liberty, 
and  safety.  I  am  happy  to  find  that  a  new  edition  of  this  in- 
valuable work  has  lately  appeared,  in  a  very  handsome  style, 
from  the 'press  of  Mr.  Hopkins,  in  New- York.  It  ought  to  be 
taught  in  our  schools,  and  studied  by  our  lawyers  and  states- 
men, as  an  elementary  code  of  instruction  and  wisdom. 

MR.  HAMILTON  was  a  member  of  the  State  Convention, 
which  met  in  the  summer  of  1788,  and  he  was  there  active- 
ly employed  for  six  weeks  in  enforcing,  by  his  eloquent 


<  203  ) 

speeches,  the  principles  he  had  previously,  and  so  much  at 
large,  detailed  in  the  Federalist.  The  sketch  of  the  debates 
which  was  published,  conveyed  a  very  inadequate  idea  of 
the  talents  and  arguments  employed  in  the  mutual  discus- 
sions which  took  place  in  that  assembly.  The  speeches  of 
Mr.  Hamilton,  which  I  should  select  as  containing  the  best 
display  of  his  sound  and  pre-eminent  mind,  were  those  in 
vindication  of  the  constitutional  stability  and  permanency  of 
the  Senate  of  the  United  States.  In  these  he  undertook  to 
demonstrate  that  the  organization  of  that  branch  ought  to  be 
as  strong,  at  least,  as  they  found  it ;  and  that  from  the  na- 
ture of  man  and  the  lessons  of  experience,  it  was  to  be  seen 
that  a  firm,  stable  body  in  the  government,  was  essential  to 
correct  the  prejudices,  check  the  passions,  and  control  the 
fluctuations  of  the  more  popular  branch. 

THE  constitution  having  gone  into  operation,  and  the  ex- 
ecutive departments  being  established,  Mr.  Hamilton  was 
appointed,  in  the  summer  of  1789,  to  the  office  of  Secretary 
of  the  Treasury.  This  office  he  held  between  five  and  six 
years  j  and  when  we  look  back  to  the  measures  that,  within 
that  period,  he  originated,  matured,  and  vindicated,  we  are 
astonished  in  the  contemplation  of  the  various  powers  of  his 
vigorous  and  exalted  mind.  His  reports  were  so  many  didac- 
tic dissertations,  laboriously  wrought  and  highly  finished,  on 
some  of  the  most  intricate  and  abstract  subjects  in  political 
economy.  Among  those  reports  we  designate  as  the  most  in- 
teresting, his  report  of  January,  1790,  on  a  provision  for  the 
support  of  the  public  credit ;  of  December,  1790,  on  the  esta- 
blishment of  a  national  bank  ;  of  December,  1791,  on  the  sub- 
ject of  manufactures  j  and  of  January,  1795,  (being  his  las* 
official  act)  on  a  plan  for  the  further  support  of  public  credit. 
Mr.  Hamilton  may  justly  be  regarded  as  the  Founder  of  the 
Public  Credit  of  this  'country,  He  raised  it  from  the  dust, 


(  204  ) 

and  placed  it  on  sound  foundations.  His  great  moving 
principle  of  action  in  his  department,  was  good  faith — was  a 
punctual  performance  of  contracts.  ^.And  that  the  national 
credit  might  be  placed  beyond  the  reach  of  any  stroke  that 
could  in  the  least  degree  annoy  or  alarm  it,  he  urged  to 
Congress  the  express  renunciation,  by  law,  of  all  right  to  tax 
the  public  funds,  or  to  sequester  at  any  time,  or  on  any  pre- 
text, the  property  of  foreigners  therein.  He  enabled  this 
country  to  know,  feel,  and  develope  its  immense  resources, 
and  under  his  administration,  the  finances  advanced  to  a 
state  of  prosperity  beyond  all  expectation,  and  so  as  to  en- 
gage the  attention  and  command  the  confidence  of  Europe. 
And  so  far  from  giving  colour  to  the  vile  calumny  which 
has  been  insinuated  against  him,  that  he  patronized  the 
doctrine  that  a  public  debt  was  a  public  blessing,  he  incul- 
cates with  great  solipitude  in  his  reports,  that  the  progres- 
sive accumulation  of  debt  was  the  natural  disease  of  all  go- 
vernments ;  that  it  ought  to  be  guarded  against  with  provi- 
dent foresight  and  inflexible  perseverance  j  that  it  ought  to 
be  a  fundamental  maxim  in  the  system  of  public  credit, 
(and  which  he  uniformly  endeavoured  to  enforce  by  prac- 
tice) ;  that  the  creation  of  debt  should  always  be  accompanied 
-with  the  means  of  extinguishment ;  that  the  observance  of  this 
axiom  was  the  true  secret  to  render  public  credit  immortal, 
In  his  last  report,  he  recommends  a  provision  for  augment-? 
ing  the  sinking  fund,  so  as  to  render  it  commensurate  with 
the  entire  debt  of  the  United  States ;  and  he  proposed  to 
secure  that  fund  by  a  sanction  the  most  inviolable,  and 
which  was  no  less  than  to  make  the  application  of  the  fund 
to  the  object,  a  part  of  the  contract  with  the  creditor.  By 
such  means,  and  with  such  efforts,  did  he  build  up  and  esta- 
blish the  important  interests  of  the  nation  confided  to  his  care ; 
he  has  left  to  his  successors  little  more  to  do  than  to  follow 
his  precepts,  and  to  shine  by  the  lustre  ,pf  his  example. 


(205) 

His  report  on  manufactures  is  a  chefcTouvre  of  the  kind, 
and  the  most  laboured  performance  that  he  ever  gave  to  the 
world.  It  is  not  more  distinguished  for  knowledge  and  in- 
vestigation, than  for  having  given  a  deep  wound  to  the  te- 
nets of  the  sect  of  the  French  economists,  and  also  to  an- 
other system  of  politics  which  had  grown  fashionable  among 
political  philosophers.  The  system  I  allude  to,  is  to  be 
met  with  in  Smittfs  Inquiry  into  the  Wealth  of  Nations.  This 
report  adopts  the  principles  of  the  mercantile  system,  and 
leaves  the  theory  of  Smith  as  amusing  and  beautiful  in  spe- 
culation, but  which)  in  the  present  state  of  things,  is  not  re- 
ducible to  practice.  That  bold,  profound,  and  systematic 
writer,  who  attacked  the  manufacturing  and  mercantile  in- 
terests of  Great  Britain  as  founded  upon  an  oppressive  mono- 
poly, lays  down  an  entire  freedom  of  commerce  and  in- 
dustry, undiverted  and  unimpeded  by  government,  as  the 
best  means  of  advancing  nations  to  prosperity  and  great- 
ness. The  secretary  combats  with  great  ability  some  of  the 
fundamental  principles  of  this  doctrine,  and  he  adopts  the 
mercantile  system  upon  the  basis  of  self-defence,  and  as 
most  wise,  because  Europe  perseveres  in  the  same  system. 

ALL  his  principal  reports  are  remarkable  for  uniting  depth 
of  research  with  clearness  of  perception,  the  closest  logic 
with  the  utmost  purity  and  precision  of  expression  ;  and  his 
official  labours  in  this  department,  united  with  the  honesty 
with  which  he  conducted  it,  and  which  the  most  penetrating- 
inquisition  into  all  the  avenues  of  his  office  could  never 
question,  will,  perhaps,  form  with  posterity  the  fairest 
monument  of  his  fame. 

MR.  HAMILTON,  in  his  character  of  Secretary  of  the 
Treasury,  was  also  one  of  the  constitutional  advisers  of  the 
President  in  relation  generally  to  the  duties  of  his  office,  and 


C  206  ) 

I  apprehend  that  few,  if  any  matters  of  moment,  were  trans- 
acted without  the  sanction  of  his  counsel.  The  season  dur- 
ing which  he  presided  over  the  treasury  department,  was 
unusually  critical.  The  French  revolution  progressed  with  a 
rapidity  and  violence  that  threatened  to  involve  the  whole 
civilized  world  in  combustion  and  ruin.  Not  content  with 
their  own  regeneration,  the  French  rulers,  in  1793,  adopted 
the  intolerance  of  the  Koran,  and  began  to  propagate  their 
new  faith  by  the  sword,  and  to  carry  on  an  universal  war, 
cither  of  force  or  of  fraud,  against  all  the  unbelieving  nations 
of  the  earth,  and  against  all  the  governments  under  which 
they  lived,  as  being  so  many  monuments  of  tyranny  and  su- 
perstition. At  this  awful  crisis,  a  furious  war  is  begun 
against  Great  Britian,  and  M.  Genet  is  sent  as  minister  to 
the  United  States,  charged  with  secret  instructions  (which 
he  afterwards  published,  and  on  which  he  faithfully  acted) 
to  excite  the  Americans,  even  if  their  ministers  should  be 
timid  and  wavering,  to  make  a  common  cause  with  France  in 
the  new  war  she  had  then  commenced.  To  meet  this  im- 
portant epoch,  the  Proclamation  of  Neutrality  was  issued  by 
the  President  of  the  United  States  ;  and  to  defend  that  great 
measure  as  lawful  and  expedient,  against  the  prejudices  and 
passions  which  the  French  minister  had  but  too  successfully 
excited,  the  essays  of  Pacificus  appeared. 

THESE  essays  were  written  and  published  by  Mr.  Hamil- 
ton in  the  summer  of  1793  ;  and  of  all  his  productions,  none 
ever  appeared  at  a  more  seasonable  juncture,  or  were  cal- 
culated to  produce  a  more  auspicious  effect.  Their  object 
was  to  prove  that  the  President  had  competent  authority  to 
iseue  the  proclamation  in  question  : — That  it  was  only  a  de- 
claration of  what  was  the  existing  law  of  the  land,  the  neu- 
trality of  our  government,  and  that  as  constitutional  executor 
of  the  laws,  it  would  be  his  duty  to  see  that  neutrality  faith- 


(20?) 

fully  observed :— -That  we  were  under  no  obligation  from 
existing  treaties  to  become  a  party  in  the  war :— That,  con- 
sidering the  peculiar  origin  and  nature  of  the  warfare,  the 
United  States  had  valid  and  honourable  pleas  against  any  in- 
terference : — That  the  obligations  of  gratitude  imposed  upon 
nations  the  mutual  returns  of  good-will  and  benevolence, 
but  were  no  sufficient  ground  for  war  ;  and  that  those  obli- 
gations would  more  naturally  point  to  the  hand  from  whom 
antecedent  favours  had  been  received,  and  which,  in  this 
case,  was  the  amiable  and  unfortunate  monarch  whom  the 
revolution  had  just  swept  from  the  throne. 

IT  cannot  be  denied  that  these  essays  were  too  well  writ- 
ten, and  addressed  themselves  too  powerfully  to  the  inter- 
est and  good  sense  of  the  country,  not  to  have  had  their  in- 
fluence  in  rendering  popular  this  important  act  of  admini- 
stration ;  and  it  is  well  known  that  the  proclamation  received 
afterwards  the  sanction  not  only  of  Congress,  but  of  the 
community  at  large. 

IN  January,  1795,  Mr.  Hamilton  resigned  the  office  of 
Secretary  of  the  Treasury,  and  once  more  returned  to'  pri- 
vate life.  But  he  still  felt  himself  charged  to  vindicate  an- 
other important  measure  of  the  government,  of  which  he 
had  no  doubt  been  a  responsible  adviser  ;  I  allude  to  Mr. 
Jay's  negociation  and  treaty  with  Great-Britain.  This  trea- 
ty had  to  encounter  inveterate  prejudices  and  combustible 
materials,  which  spread  their  root  as  far  back  as  the  revo- 
lutionary war,  but  which  had  been  enkindled  and  armed 
with  tenfold  virulence  by  the  pestilential  breath  of  the  French 
Revolution.  Even  at  this  late  day,  the  temperate  historian 
is  admonished  to  tread  lightly  over  these  ashes  of  party-spi- 
rit. Mr.  Hamilton  devoted  the  summer  of  1795  to  a  de- 
tence  of  this  treaty,  in  a  series  of  Essay  sunder  the  signature 

2  E 


(208  ) 

of  Camillus.  The  first  twenty-two  numbers  were  appropriat- 
ed to  an  examination  of  the  ten  permanent  articles  of  this 
treaty,  and  which  articles  continue  to  this  day  the  law  of  the 
land.  The  remainder  of  the  treaty  was  commercial  and 
temporary,  and  4has  already  expired.  The  discussion  of 
this  latter  part  was  not  equal  in  interest,  and  being  written, 
with  less  attention,  and  by  different  hands,  was  not  equal  in 
ability  to  the  other.  But  this  defence,  taken  together,  must 
now  be  considered  by  every  competent  and  impartial  reader, 
as  one  of  the  most  full  and  satisfactory  illustrations  that  per- 
haps ever  was  given  of  a  complicated  diplomatic  question. 
I  presume  there  does  not  exist  any  thing  among  the  piles  of 
European  state  papers,  to  be  compared  to  it ;  although  one 
reason  for  this  may  be,  that  in  Europe  no  such  precise  and 
formal  vindication  of  any  national  treaty,  has  ever  been 
deemed  requisite.  The  beneficial  effects  of  this  treaty,  and 
which  are  known  and  felt  constantly,  have  at  last  accomplish- 
ed what  argument  r.lone  could  not  do — they  have  forced  an 
universal  conviction  upon  the  public  mind ;  and  all  the  dead 
spectres  which  were  conjured  up  at  the  time  to  terrify  the 
imagination,  and  blind  the  judgment,  have  long  since  dis- 
appeared before  the  light  of  experience.  It  is  to  be  observ- 
ed that  the  question  was  not  whether  the  treaty  was  in  all 
respects  the  most  desirable,  (for  treaties  are  acts  of  mutual 
accommodation)  but  the  true  question  was,  whether  the  trea- 
ty did  not  adjust,  in  a  reasonable  manner,  the  points  in  con- 
troversy between  the  two  nations  ;  and  whether  our  interests 
did  not  demand,  and  our  honour  permit  us  to  adopt  it.  The 
sanction  it  received  from  our  government,  and  the  general 
approbation  it  has  ultimately  met  with,  overcoming  in  its 
progress  the  stream  of  prejudice,  and  the  obstacles  of  foreign 
intrigue  and  menace,  have  given  the  definitive  answer  to  this 
question.  The  articles  upon  which  Camillus  more  empha- 
tically bent  and  exhausted  the  strength  and  resources  of  his 


(  209  ) 

mind,  were  the  3d  article,  on  the  intercourse  between  the 
United  States  and  Canada ;  and  the  10th  article,  providing 
against  the  confiscation  of  private  debts  in  time  of  war.  I 
beg  leave  to  recommend  these  two  heads  of  his  performance 
as  uncommonly  excellent.  The  latter  is  a  finished  treatise  by 
itself,  and  forms  a  chapter  on  the  law  of  nations,  equally  ac- 
curate, didactic,  and  moraL  It  vindicates  the  treaty-stipu- 
lation on  the  ground  of  reason  and  principle,  of  policy  and 
expediency,  on  the  opinions  of  the  most  enlightened  jurists, 
and  the  usage  of  nations, 

THE  last  great  occasion  which  called  Mr.  Hamilton  for- 
ward upon  the  theatre  of  public  action,  existed  in  the  spring 
of  the  year  1798.  It  will  be  recollected  that  France  had  been 
long  making  piratical  depredations  upon  our  commerce  ;  that 
negociation  and  a  pacific  adjustment  had  been  repeatedly 
attempted  on  the  part  of  this  country,  without  success  ;  that 
our  minister  had  been  refused  an  audience ;  that  three  mi- 
nisters extraordinary  had  been  treated  with  the  grossest  in- 
dignity, and  money  demanded  of  the  United  3tates  on  terms 
the  most  degrading.  The  doors  of  reconciliation  being  thus 
barred,  we  had  no  honourable  alternative  left,  but  open  and 
determined  resistance. 

AND  what  was  the  power  that  had  thus  used  us  ?  It  was 
a  power  the  most  terrible  in  strength  ;  the  most  daring  in 
project;  the  most  unchecked  in  means;  the  most  fatal  to 
its  victims,  of  any  that  a  righteous  providence  had  hitherto 
permitted  to  exist  upon  this  globe,  for  the  awful  chastisement 
of  the  human  race.  All  the  States,  even  of  the  republican 
form,  that  fell  within  her  wide-spread  grasp  ;  the  United  Ne- 
therlands, Geneva,  the  Swiss  Cantons,  Genoa,  and  Venice, 
had  already  been  prostrated  by  her  arms,  or  her  still  more 
formidable  caresses.  She  was  at  that  moment  busy  in  her 


(210) 

schemes  of  universal  domination,  and  was  fitting  out  a  vast 
armament  in  the  ports  of  the  Mediterranean,  for  some  dis- 
tant expedition  of  conquest  and  plunder.  At  this  portentous 
period,  Mr.  Hamilton  published  The  Stand)  or  a  series  of 
essays  under  the  signature  of  Thus  Manlius,  with  a  view  to. 
rouse  the  people  of  this  country  to  a  sense  of  their  impend* 
ing  danger,  and  to  measures  of  defence,  which  should  be  at 
once  vigorous  and  manly. 

IN  these  Essays  he  portrays,  with  the  glow  and  colouring 
of  a  master-artist,  the  conduct  of  revolutionizing  France  to* 
wards  her  own  people  and  towards  other  nations,  and  he 
shows  that  she  had  undermined  the  main  pillars  of  civilized 
society ;  that  she  betrayed  a  plan  to  disorganize  the  human 
mind  itself,  by  attempting  to  destroy  all  religious  opinion, 
and  pervert  a  whole  people  to  atheism  j  that  her  ruling  pas* 
sions  were  ambition  and  fanaticism,  and  that  she  aimed 
equally  to  proselyte,  subjugate,  and  debase  every  govern- 
ment  without  distinction,  to  effect  the  aggrandizement  of 
the  "  Great  Nation !"  He  then  gave  a  detail  of  the  accumu- 
lated injuries  and  insults  we  had  received  from  France,  and 
showed  that  her  object  was  to  degrade  and  humble  our  go- 
vernment, and  prepare  the  way  for  revolution  and  conquest. 
He  concluded,  as  the  result  of  his  work,  that  we  ought  to 
suspend  our  treaties  with  France,  fortify  our  harbours,  de- 
fend our  commerce  on  the  ocean,  attack  their  predatory 
cruisers  on  our  coast,  create  a  respectable  naval  force,  and 
raise,  or  organize  and  discipline,  a  considerable  army,  as  an 
indispensable  precaution  against  attempts  at  invasion,  which, 
might  put  in  jeopardy  our  very  existence  as  a  nation.  He 
considered  that  militia  alone  would  be  a  very  inadequate  and 
fallacious  reliance  against  veteran  troops,  headed  by  some 
enterprising  chief;  but  that  when  we  had  made  the  defen- 
sive preparations  he  had  recommended,  we  could  then  meet 
their  aggressions  in  the  attitude  of  calm  defiance,  .'v- 


(211  ) 

So  undeniable  were  all  these  facts,  so  irresistible  were 
the  conclusions  which  he  drew  from  them,  that  in  the  sum- 
mer of  1 798,  these  measures  suggested  by  Mr.  Hamilton 
were  all  literally  carried  into  execution  by  Congress,  and 
received  the  warm  and  hearty  sanction  of  the  nation.  An 
honourable,  proud,  and  manly  sentiment,  was  then  enkindled 
and  pervaded  the  continent ;  it  reflected  high  honour  on  our 
national  character,  and  that  character  was  transmitted  to  Eu- 
rope, as  a  means  of  respect  and  a  pledge  of  security. 

A  NEW  provisional  army,  consisting,  however,  of  but 
twelve  regiments  of  infantry,  and  six  troops  of  light  dra- 
goons, was  ordered  to  be  immediately  raised,  and  Mr.  Ha- 
milton, upon  the  express  and  pointed  solicitations  of  Gene- 
ral Washington,  was  appointed  Inspector-General.  On  the 
death  of  that  great  man,  he  succeeded  to  the  office  of  Com- 
mander in  Chief y  and  continued  in  that  character  for  a  few 
months,  and  until  this  little  army  was  disbanded  in  the  sum* 
mer  of  1800. 

DURING  this  military  avocation,  Gen.  Hamilton  bestowed 
indefatigable  efforts  to  organize  and  discipline  the  troops ; 
and  he  improved  himself  greatly  in  the  study  of  the  science 
of  war,  and  of  the  kindred  sciences  of  mathematics,  geome- 
try, and  chemistry,  of  which  he  was  particularly  fond.  And 
should  any  crisis  have  arisen,  in  the  future  destinies  of  our 
country,  in  which  some  hero  or  statesman  would  have  been 

w 

wanted  "  in  resisting  mischief,  or  effecting  good,"  the  eyes 
of  America  would  no  doubt  have  been  concentrated  on  this 
first  and  fairest  of  her  sons.  But  alas !  these  dreams  of 
consolation  are  gone  !  He  has  fallen  by  the  hands  of  a  base 
assassin  / — Accept,  venerable  shade,  this  tribute  of  a  friend, 
who  regards  thy  loss  as  a  great  national  calamity,  and  recol- 
lects thy  talents  and  virtues  with  the  purest  respect,  and  the 
fondest  devotion ! 


s   .(  212  ) 

THE  Albany  Centinel  of  August  29,  presents  us  with  the 
following  affecting  Article  : 

"  INCIDENTAL  circumstances  have  prevented  our  noticing, 
of  late,  many  passing  occurrences  of  the  day,  as  they  de- 
serve. One  of  these,  and  which  we  consider  by  no  means 
the  least  interesting,  is  the  manner  in  which  our  Supreme 
Court  testified  their  respect  for  the  character  of  Gen.  Ha- 
milton, and  deep  affliction  for  his  death,  at  their  session  in 
this  city,  which  closed  on  the  18th  inst.  By  direction  of 
the  judges,  the  bench,  the  bar,  including  the  seats  of  the 
counsellors  and  attornies,  the  clerk's  desk  and  table,  and  the 
wall  back  of  the  judges  seat,  were  hung  in  black  during  the 
term*.  In  no  place,  perhaps,  could  a  tribute  of  this  kind 
have  been  offered  with  a  more  striking  effect.  It  is  here, 
more  than  any  where,  that  ah1  who  have  attended  court,  with 
whatever  motive,  feel  the  deprivation  of  its  late  peerless 
member.  It  is  here  we  recollect  our  first  inquiries  used  to 
be,  as  if  every  gratification  depended  upon  it,  is  Hamilton 
in  town?  and  if  present,  his  engaging  address  and  his  intel- 
ligent eye  never  failed  to  interest  us — 4o  raise  our  expecta- 
tions.^-" When  he  began,  we  were  attentive — an  harmo- 
nious voice- — select  expressions — elevated  sentiment.  He 
divided  his  subject — we  perceived  his  distinctions :  nothing 
perplexed — nothing  insipid — nothing  languid.  He  unfolded 
the  web  of  his  argument — we  were  enthralled.  He  refuted 
the  sophism — we  were  freed.  He  introduced  a  pertinent 
narrative — we  were  interested.  He  modulated  his  voice — - 
we  were  charmed.  He  was  jocular — we  smiled.  He  pres- 
sed serious  truths — we  yielded  to  their  force.  He  address- 
ed the  passions — the  tears  glided  down  our  cheeks.  And 
had  he  raised  his  voice  in  anger,  we  should  have  trembled 

*  The  same  mark  of  respect  was  paid  to  his  memory  by   the  Mayor's 
Qourt  in  this  city,  where  Mr.  Clinton  presides. 


(  213  ) 

and  wished  ourselves  away."  Here,  and  in  him,  have  we. 
often  seen  the  human  character  raised  to  its  "  noon-tide 
point."  -Alas !  how  chilling  is  this  sable  contrast !  " 


WHO  can  read,  without  heartfelt  emotion,  the  subsequent 
Communication,  from  the  same  paper  ? 

"  Communication* — ON  Sunday  morning  the  afflicted  Mrs, 
HAMILTON  attended  divine  service  in  the  Presbyterian 
Church  in  this  city,  with  her  three  little  sons. 

"  AT  the  close  of  a  prayer  by  the  Rev.  Mr.  Nott,  the 
eldest  dropped  on  his  face,  in  a  fainting  fit. 

"  Two  gentlemen  immediately  raise<l  him,  and  while 
bearing  him  out  of  the  church,  the  afflicted  mother  sprung 
forward,  in  the  agonies  of  grief  and  despair,  towards  her 
apparently  lifeless  son. 

"  THE  heart-rending  scenes  she  had  recently  struggled 
with,  called  forth  all  the  fine-spun  sensibilities  of  her  na* 
ture....and  seemed  to  say,  that  nature  must,  and  will  be  in- 
dulged  in  her  keenest  sorrows.. ..She  was  overpowered  in 
the  conflict,  and  likewise  sunk....uttering  such  heart-rending 
groans,  and  inward  sighs,  as  would  have  melted  into 
mingled  sympathies,  even  Burr  himself. 

*'  BOTH  of  them  soon  recovered — and  while  the  little  son 
was  supported  standing  on  the  steps,  yet  speechless,  the  most 
affecting  scene  presented  itself — a  scene,  could  it  be  placed  on 
canvass  by  the  hand  of  a  master,  would  be  in  the  highest  de- 
gree interesting  and  impressive.  The  mother,  in  this  tender 


(214) 

situation,  fastened  herself  upon  the  son,  with  her  head  re- 
clining on  his  left  shoulder — the  agonies  so  strongly  painted 
on  her  countenance — her  long  flowing  weeds — the  majesty  of 
her  person— the  position  of  both— 'and  above  all,  the  pecu- 
liarity of  their  trying  situation  in  the  recent  loss  of  a  hus- 
band, and  a  father — who  could  refrain  from  invoking  on  the 
head  of  the  guilty  author  of  their  miseries,  those  curses  he 
so  rightly  merits  ?  The  curse  of  living  despised,  and  ex- 
ecrated by  the  voice  of  a  whole  nation — the  curse  of  being 
held  up  to  the  view  of  future  ages — a  MONSTER,  and  an  AS- 


SASSIN." 


THE  following  pious  extract  from  a  late  Sermon,  deliver- 
ed in  the  northern  part  of  this  state,  is  well  calculated  to 
produce  the  most  salutary  effect. 

FROM  THE  LANSINGBURGH  GAZETTE, 

EXTRACT  from  a  Sermon  on  the  death  of  General  Hamil- 
ton, delivered  in  this  village,  by  the  Rev.  Mr.  Blatchford, 
on  Sunday,  the  22d  ult. 


«  Again...  .Is  not  a  preparation  for  death  and  eter- 
nity a  part  of  true  honour?  And  what  if  thou  shouldst  thyself 
fall  in  the  contest  ?  How  dreadful  are  the  consequences  !  A 
state  of  horror,  distraction,  malice,  revenge,  remorse  :  Torn 
in  a  moment  from  all  the  delights  of  life,  and  all  the  advan- 
tages of  a  time  of  probation  for  eternity.  Is  this  the  tem- 
per which  becomes  a  dying  hour  ?  That  hour  we  all  would 
wish  tranquil  and  serene  ;  undisturbed  by  passion,  unagitat- 
ed  by  care  :  full  of  penitence,  humility,  gratitude,  and  sub- 


(215  ) 

mission  that  we  may  meditate  the  awful  change,  and  resign 
with  composure  our  parting  souls  into  the  hands  of  the  crea- 
tor.    Alas !  how  different  is  this  from  that  scene  of  frenzy 
we  have  been  contemplating !  but  how  much  is  the  interest 
of  these  remarks  increased  by  the  intimation  of  Eternity! 
Remember,  O  man !  that  ihe  soul  which  now  animates  thy 
frame,  is  destined  to  survive  the  pang  of  dissolution.... Al- 
low me,  therefore,  to  reason  with  thee  a  little  before  thou 
committest  the  act  of  madness.     Pause....Ponder....Where 
art  thou?    Whither  art  thou  going?    What  mayest  thou 
soon  be  ?  Thou  art  about  to  launch  into  that  awful  ocean, 
whose   domains  are  unbounded  and   unknown !  Thou  arc 
standing  upon  the  very  brink  of  eternity.    Eternity !  what  art 
thou  ?  Our  faculties  are  lost  in  the  contemplation  of  thee. 
We  soar ;  we  stretch ;  but  all  is  dark  beyond !  No  one  is 
permitted  to  return  and  bring  us  tidings  of  thee  !  Yet  let  us 
not  be  presumptuously  inquisitive.    A  short  time  hence,  and 
we  shall  explore  thy  vast  dominions.     We  then  shall  know 
•what  it  is  to  die.     But  O  !  thou  all  wise  disposer,  forbid  that 
the  solemn  hour  should  find  us  unprepared,  much  less  that 
we  should  accelerate  its  approach.     No  :  "  All  the  days  of 
my  appointed  time  will  I  wait,  till  my  change  come  !"  Thou 
rash  adventurer !  let  conscience  speak.     Hold  thy  impious 
hand.. ..Forbear  a  crime  at  which  thy  heart  recoils  ;  which 
thy  reason  condemns ;  which  Christianity  has  accursed ;  at 
which  angels  weep,  the  devils  triumph,  and  to  punish  which, 
the  rwed  flaming  sword  of  justice  is  for  ever  unsheathed. 

"  BUT  supposing  thou  shouldst  survive,  and  be  the  means 
of  the  death  of  the  man  whose  ruin  thou  didst  predeter- 
mine :  We  then  proceed  to  ask,  Is  it  not  honourable  to  pre- 
vent distress  ;  to  sooth  the  tender  heart,  ready  to  break 
for  anguish ;  to  heal  the  wounds  of  the  widow's  soul,  and 
dry  up  the  tears  of  the  orphan ;  to  secure  to  thy  country, 

2  F 


(  216  ) 

talents  which  dazzle  by  their  lustre,  and  in  their  exertion 
have  an  irresistible  and  commanding  influence  ?  Thy  act 
then  must  be  stamped  with  the  deepest  turpitude,  and  be 
sealed  with  the  broadest  mark  of  infamy.  Perhaps  thine 
antagonist,  whom  thou  hast  drawn  into  the  field,  is  the  fa- 
ther of  a  numerous  family,  and  the  husband  of  an  affection- 
ate wife.  Methinks  I  see  the  disconsolate  widow,  which 
thou  hast  made,  wringing  her  hands  in  anguish,  and  pour- 
ing out  her  soul  in  unavailing  tears.  Thou  hast  plunged  a 
dagger  into  a  heart  that  never  offended  thee.  O  desperate 
ruffian !  Didst  thou  not  reflect  upon  the  barbarous  deed  • 
Was  there  nothing  in  female  helplessness,  widowed  and  alone, 
to  stay  thine  hand  ?  But  O !  what  sight  is  here....here  are 
seven  lovely  children,  and  one  of  them  and  infant !  Thou 
hast  made  them  orphans,  and  left  them  to  a  precarious  fate. 
Dost  thou  not  hear  their  distressful  cries  ?  Dost  thou  no* 
see  their  gushing  tears  ?  Thou  hast  left  them  unprotected, 
in  a  dangerous  world,  and  rudely  deprived  them  of  the  ten- 
der hand,  which  might  have  led  them  to  virtue  and  to  use- 
fulness. They  cry  in  vain  upon  their  sire.  Thou  hast  sent 
him  to  the  silent  tomb,  and  they  shall  see  his  face  no  more- 
But  perhaps  thou  hast  stained  thine  hands  with  the  blood  of 
a  patriot,  whose  uncommon  genius  wras  exerted  in  early  life 
to  save  that  country  which  gave  thee  birth,  and  which  thou 
art  bound  to  respect  by  the  most  solemn  and  imposing  obli- 
gations. Was  there  nothing  in  the  fair  character  of  his  ho- 
nour to  restrain  the  weapon  of  destruction  ?  Did  you  not  re- 
flect upon  his  well-earned  fame  ;  or  was  it  envy  of  his  great- 
ness which  prompted  the  savage  deed  ?  Did  you  not  think 
upon  a  country  in  tears ;  and  in  the  impulse  of  veneration 
universally  to  be  paid  to  the  memory  of  the  departed  hero, 
hear  the  execration  of  thy  act  ?..,.But  perhaps  he  stood  high 
in  professional  merit,  and  his  eloquence  and  his  knowledge 
gave,  him  the  first  place  in  public  admiration  and  distinc" 


(217) 

tion !  Was  there  nothing  in  his  illustrious  talents  to  soften 
thy  spirit  and  make  thee  distrust  thy  own  rashness  ?  No,  no- 
thing in  this,  nor  in  any  of  these,  to  restrain  thy  fury. 
Thou  hast  accomplished  the  fatal  purpose.  Thou  hast 
mocked  the  tears  of  the  widow  j  neglected  the  cries  of 
the  orphans ;  injured  thy  country  in  the  death  of  her  mag- 
nanimous friend ;  and  stifled  eloquence  and  gepius,  in  the 
destruction  of  their  favourite  son  !..«.My  brethren!  this 
is  not  a  fancied  picture — for  Hamilton  is  slain  !  He  who  was 
the  associate  of  your  beloved  Washington ;  and  as  he  him- 
self expresses  it,  "  his  principal,  and  most  confidential  aid; 
-whose  acknowledged  abilities  and  integrity  placed  him  on  high 
ground ;  and  made  him  a  conspicuous  character  in  the  United 
States,  and  even  in  Europe"  is  slain !  He  is  no  more,  of 
whom  the  father  of  your  country  declared,  that  "  his  ambi- 
tion was  of  that  laudable  kind,  which  prompts  a  man  to  excel 
in  whatever  he  takes  in  hand;  who  was  enterprising,  quick  in 
his  pereeptions,  and  in  his  judgment  intuitively  great*"  Will 
you  not,  my  brethren,  deeply  regret  the  cause  of  his  death  ? 
whilst  you  mourn  the  death  itself!"  - 


THE  following  proceedings  of  the  Cincinnati,  at  Charles- 
ton, will  be  read  with  uncommon  interest  by  every  good 
man,  and  we  hope  be  followed  by  a  similar  measure  here 
and  elsewhere. 

I  ..-""  I'.         .  A  •  \" 

FROM  THE  CHARLESTON  COURIER. 

MR.  EDITOR, 

\ 

PLEASE  to  insert  in  your  paper,  for  the  information  of  the 
public,  the  following  circular  letter  and  memorial,  which 

*  Vide  Washington's  letter  to  President  Adams,  recommending  Gen. 
Hamilton  as  second  in  command,  in  the  late  army  of  the  United  States. 


(  218  ) 

K'avc  been  agreed  upon  by  the  joint  committee  of  the  State* 
Society  of  Cincinnati,  and  of  the  American  Revolution  So- 
ciety,  in  pursua  nee  of  resolutions  adopted  by  these  Socie- 


ties. 


Charleston,  S.  C.  September  12,  1804, 
SIR,  :,..>„•;•. 

HAVING  been  appointed  by  the  South-Carolina  State  So- 
ciety of  the  Cincinnati,  and  the  American  Revolution  So- 
ciety, a  joint  committee  for  draughting  and  circulating  a 
memorial  to  the  Legislature,  praying  for   legislative  inter- 
ference to  restrain  the  practice  of  duelling,  we  have  agreed 
on  the  enclosed  memorial,  and  transmit  it  to  you,  with  our 
earnest  request  that  you  would  use  your  most  vigorous  exer-. 
tions  to  have  it  generally  signed.     It  is  unnecessary  to  di- 
late on  the  mischievous  consequences  of  Duelling,  to  induce 
your  endeavours  to  check  a  practice  so  dishonourable  to  this 
state,  in  which  it  is  our  boast  to  be  governed  by  laws,  and 
not  by  men.      The  necessity  of  applying  to  the  Legislature 
on  the  subject,  is  obvious  ;  for  it  is  well  known,  that  the 
existing  laws  have  never  brought  any  Duellist  to  serious  in- 
conveniences, and  there  is  well  founded  reason  for  believing 
that  they  never  can,  in  consequence  of  the  weight  of  prece- 
dents to  the  contrary.     Our  only  alternative,  therefore,  is 
to  acquiesce  in  the  practice  of  Duelling,  or  to  restrain  it  by 
a  new  law.     The  difficulties  of  framing  any  law,  that  may 
afford  an  adequate  remedy  to  the  evil,  are  great,  but  not  in- 
surmountable. 

IT  is  not  to  be  supposed  that  our  Legislature  is  less  wise 
than  that  of  several  of  our  sister  states,  whose  laws  have 
been  so  operative  that  in  several  of  them,  duels  are  absolutely 
unknown.  If  a  respectable  number  of  the  friends  of  good 
government,  morality,  and  religion,  sign  the  memorial  we 


'(  219  ) 

have  forwarded,  or  any  similar  one,  the  Legislature,  ever 
attentive  to  the  wishes  of  their  constituents,  will  enter  se- 
riously on  the  business,  and  we  doubt  not  of  their  ability  to 
frame  such  regulations  as  will  certainly  abolish  the  evil. 

INDEPENDENT  of  any  law  which  may  be  passed,  the  senti- 
ments of  the  most  respectable  part  of  the  community,  in  op- 
position  to  duelling,  declared  and  avowed  by  signing  the  me- 
morial, will  have   a  very  beneficial  effect.     It  will  tend  to 
correct  the  public  opinion,  and  to  restrain  all  who  wish  for 
the  esteem  of  their  fellow-citizens,  from  engaging  in  a  prac- 
tice which  the   virtue  and  good  sense   of  the  community 
have  so  pointedly  denounced.     These,  and  many  other  ar- 
guments, which  must  occur  on  reflection,  will  be  sufficient 
to  convince  you,  that  in  procuring  signers  to  the  memorial, 
you  will  do  a  service  acceptable  to  God  and  beneficial  to 
man.     We  have  further  to  request  you,  to  forward  the  me  • 
morial   to  Columbia,  by   the  first   Monday  in  November 
next,  that  they  may  all  be  presented  together  to  the  Legis- 
lature on  the  first  day  of  their  meeting  ;  when  we  hope  for 
the  sublime  pleasure   of  seeing  an  abhorrence  of  duelling 
pointedly  expressed  by  many  thousands  of  our  most  deserv- 
ing citizens. 

We  are,  with  great  respect, 

Your  most  obedient  servants, 

CHARLES  C.  PINCKNEY,  JAMES  KENNEDY, 
WILLIAM  READ,  Committee  of  the  Cincinnati.  DA- 
VID RAMSAY,  HENRY  W.  DESAUSSURE,  WIL- 
LIAM ALLEN  DEAS,  JAMES  LOWNDES,  RICH- 
ARD FURMAN,  Committee  of  the  American  Revolution 
Society. 

P.  S.  IMPRESSED  with  a  firm  belief  that  many  advantages 
would  result  from  illuminating  the  public  mind  on  the  in- 


(  220  ) 

consistency  of  the  spirit  and  principles  of  the  practice  against 
which  the  memorial  is  levelled,  with  the  spirit  and  princi- 
ples of  our  holy  religion,  we  earnestly  request,  as  a  particu- 
lar favour,  that  you  would,  at  some  convenient  early  day, 
preach  a  sermon  on  the  sin  and  folly  of  Duelling.  When 
the  public  sentiment  is  correctly  made  up  on  this  subject,  the 
advocates  for  duelling  will  be  struck  with  their  inconsisten- 
cy, in  claiming  for  themselves  the  high  and  honourable  ap- 
pellation of  Christians.  In  our  opinion,  public  previous  no- 
tice of  the  day  on  which  the  proposed  sermon  will  be  preach- 
ed, would,  in  general,  be  both  proper  and  useful ;  but,  on 
this  subject,  you  will  judge  for  yourself. 

N.  B.  THE  above  postscript  is  omitted  in  all  letters  which 
are  not  addressed  to  Clergymen. 

To  the  Honourable  the  President  and  Members  of  the  Se^ 
nate,  and  the  Honourable  the  Speaker,  and  the  other 
Members  of  the  House  of  Representatives  of  the  State  of 

South-Carolina. 

i 

The  Memorial  of  the  Subscribers,  Citizens  of  the  said  State^ 

SHOWETH, 

THAT  your  memorialists  are  deeply  impressed 
with  grief  at  the  prevalence  of  the  custom  of  duelling,  which, 
trampling  upon  all  laws,  human  and  divine,  sweeps  off  ma- 
ny useful  citizens,  leaving  their  families  a  prey  to  sorrow, 
and  often  to  poverty  and  vice. 

THAT  this  custom  originated  in  dark  and  barbarous  ages 
when  a  regular  and  impartial  administration  of  justice  was 
unknown  and  unpractised — but  it  ought  not  to  be  tolerated 
by  the  civilization  of  modem  times,  under  a  legislation  which 
has  provided,  or  may  easily  provide,  adequate  redress,  for 


(221) 

all  serious  injuries  committed  against  the  life,  liberty,  fame, 
or  property  of  the  citizen. 

THAT  this  custom  erects  a  tribunal  for  the  settlement  of 
personal  differences,  in  which,  contrary  to  all  sound  princi- 
ples, a  man  becomes  the  sole  judge  in  his  own  cause; 
whence,  as  might  have  been  expected  from  such  a  code, 
the  only  punishments  for  the  lowest,  as  well  as  highest  of- 
fences, are  written  in  blood. 

THAT  restraining  personal  resentments,  by  giving  the  at- 
tribute of  vengeance  to  the  laws,  was  the  greatest  victory 
obtained  by  civilization  over  barbarism....but  the  custom  of 
duelling  is  too  well  calculated  to  defeat  the  beneficial  effects 
of  that  triumph,  and  to  weaken  the  authority  of  all  laws,  by 
accustoming  men  to  contemn  their  sanctions. 

THAI1  your  memorialists  are  apprehensive  from  the  fre- 
quency of  the  practice  of  late  years,  that  this  custom  is  gain- 
ing ground,  and  seems  likely  to  be  carried  to  such  great 
lengths,  as  to  degrade  men  to  the  condition  of  gladiators, 
and  to  introduce  anew  the  reign  of  barbarism. 

THAT  from  the  nature  of  the  human  mind,  men  are 
ever  ready  to  follow  examples,  especially  those  set  by  emi- 
nent persons;  when,  therefore,  the  body  of  the  community 
perceives  great,  and  in  other  respects  virtuous  citizens,  shed- 
ding "each  other's  blood  on  slight  provocations,  or  trivial 
pretences,  the  fatal  practice  becomes  general.  Thus  the 
barriers  between  virtue  and  vice,  innocence  and  guilt,  are 
broken  down ;  and  that  horror  of  shedding  human  blood 
wantonly,  which  is  the  best  safe-guard  of  the  peace  of  so- 
ciety, is  greatly  diminished,  or  wholly  destroyed. 

THAT  in  countries  where  distinctions  of  rank  are  sanction- 


(  222  ) 

tdj  a  pernicious  custom  may  exist,  and  be  confined  to  the 
higher  orders  of  society,  and  be,  comparatively,  little  de- 
structive...^^ that,  in  our  country  of  equal  laws,  rights, 
and  rank,  such  custom,  if  unchecked  by  the  laws,  will  ne- 
cessarily become  general,  and  spread  its  destructive  effects 
far  and  wide  in  the  community,  to  the  desolation  of  thou- 
sands of  families. 

THAT  this  mortal  vengeance  is  not  resorted  to  merely 
in  cases  of  grievous  injuries,  for  which  the  laws  may  not 
have  provided  an  adequate  remedy :  but  in  many  cases  of 
trivial  offence,  which  a  generous  mind  would  willingly  par- 
don, this  tyrant  custom  is  supposed  to  impose  an  obligation, 
to  call  out  to  the  field  of  blood  even  a  companion  or  friend, 
who  may  have  unguardedly  given  the  provocation* 

THAT  this  absurd  custom  decides  no  right,  and  settles  no 
point  j  as  the  religion  and  philosophy  of  modem  times  will 
not  admit,  that  the  Almighty  Disposer  of  events  will  inter- 
pose his  power  on  such  an  impious  appeal  to  his  justice ; 
which  the  credulity  of  the  Gothic  nations  believed,  when 
this  custom  existed  among  them,  in  the  form  of  judicial 
combat.  It  is,  therefore,  conceded  universally,  that  the 
innocent  and  aggrieved  person  is  as  likely  to  be  the  victim, 
as  the  guilty  offender,  and  -probably  more  so,  as  a  mild 
and  peaceable  man  would  be  less  inclined  to  acquire  or  ex- 
ert a  murderous  skill,  the  effect  of  which  he  abhors. 

THAT  the  pretence  of  those  who  would  excuse  this  cus- 
tom, on  the  ground  that  it  polishes  society,  and  prevents 
assassination,  is  wholly  unfounded:  as  the  most  polished 
nations  iof  ancient  times,  the  Grecians  and  Romans ;  and 
the  most  humane  and  civilized  nation  of  modern  times,  the 
Chinese,  have  enjoyed  society  in  perfection,  without  the 
adventitious  aid  of  this  pernicious  and  unnatural  custom ; 


(225) 

which  though  in  direct  hostility  to  the  principles  of  Christi- 
anity, prevails  only  in  Christian  Europe  and  America. 

YOUR  memorialists  have  been  informed,  that  although  the 
common  law  of  the  land  declares  homicide  in  a  duel,  to  b« 
murder,  the  law  has  become  obsolete,  and  a  dead  letter.... 
That  all  the  decisions  in  our  courts  of  justice,  have  turned 
wholly  on  the  fairness  with  which  the  duel  was  conducted ; 
and  verdicts  of  acquittal,  or  of  man-slaughter,  have  con- 
stantly been  rendered....thence  arises  a  necessity  for  a  clear 
and  explicit  expression  of  the  legislative  will,  on  this  impor- 
tant subject,  guaranteed  by  new  and  vigorous  sanctions. 

YOUR  memorialists,  therefore,  humbly  pray  that  your 
honourable  house  would  be  pleased  to  take  this  important 
subject  into  your  most  serious  consideration ;  and  that  you 
would,  in  your  wisdom,  provide  such  remedies  as  may,  ef- 
fectually, destroy  the  evil  practice  complained  of,  by  regu- 
lations, wisely  calculated  to  protect  the  fame  and  feelings  of 
the  innocent  and  insulted  person ;  and  to  punish,  rigorously, 
the  bold  offender  who  shall  dare  to  lift  his  hand  against  his 
neighbour,  and  shed  his  blood  in  a  duel,  in  violation  of  the 
divine  law  and  the  law  of  his  country. 


WE  suspect  the  following  affectionate  tribute  of  the  Scot- 
tish Muse,  which  is  taken  from  a  paper  in  the  county  of 
Washington,  state  of  Pennsylvania,  is  from  the  well  known 
pen  of  Mr.  Bruce,  whose  litde  volume  of  poetry  has,  not 
long  since,  been  perused  by  us  with  high  admiration. 

FROM  THE  WESTERN  TELEGRAPHE. 

GENERAL  HAMILTON  having  been  a  member  of  the  St. 
Andrew's  Society  of  the  city  of  New- York,  the  following 

2  * 


(  224  } 

rerses  will  not  be  unacceptable  to  the  members  of  that 
ciety  throughout  the  union,  particularly  to  such  of  them  as. 
are  native  Scotsmen. 

THE  subject  undoubtedly  claims  a  much  higher  species- 
of  Poetry  ;  but  there  is  none  in  which  the  simple  and  gen- 
uine feelings  of  nature  can  be  so  happily  expressed  as  that 
which  I  have  adopted. 

ON  THE 
MURDER  OF  HAMILTON. 

A  SCOTCH  BALLAD. 

June "  Good  night,  and  joy  be  vii'  ye  a'  I** 

OH  !  wo  betide  ye,  Aaron  Burr  ! 
May  mickle  curse  upo'  ye  fa'  ! 

Ye've  kill'd  as  brave  a  gentleman 
f  • 

As  e'er  llv'd  in  America. 

Wi'  bloody  mind  ye  ea'd  him  out, 

Wi'  practis'd  e'e  did  on  him  drawr 
And  wi'  deliberate,  murderous  aim, 

Ye  kill'd  the  flower  o'  America. 
A  nobler  heart,  an  abler  head, 

Nor  this,  nor  any  nation  saw ; 
He  was  his  Country's  hope  and  pride, 

The  darling  of  America. 

Whanow,  like  him,  wi'  temper'd  fire, 

His  country's  "  sword  will  strongly  draw  ;*** 

And,  mid  the  furious  onset,  spare 
The  vanquish 'd  foes  o'  America  I 

Whanow,  like  him,  wi'  honest  zeal, 

Will  argue  in  the  Senate  ha', 
And  'lighten  wi'  his  genius'  rays, 

The  interests  of  America  ? 

Mild,  mild  was  he,  o'  tenderest  heart. 

Kind  and  sincere  without  a  flaw ; 
A  loving  husband,  father,  friend  i 

And  oh !  he  loy'd  America, 


(  225  ) 

Torn  by  a  murderer's  desperate  arm, 

Frae  midst  his  friends  and  family  a% 
'He's  gone — the  first  of  men  is  gone — 

The  Glory  of  America ! 
Where'er  ye  go,  O  !  Aaron  Burr  ! 

The  worm  of  conscience  ay  will  gnaw:; 
Tour  haunted  fancy  ay  will  paint 

Your  bloody  deed  in  America. 

But  though  ye  flee  o'er  land  and  sea, 
And  'scape  your  injur'd  country's  law, 

The  red  right  hand  of  angry  Heaven 
Will  yet  avenge  America. 

O  save  us,  Heaven  !  frae  faction's  rage ; 

Our  headstrong  passions  keep  in  awe1. 
And  fr-<e  ambition's  hidden  arts, 

O  God  !  preserve  America. 


THE  following  highly  finished  "  Sketch,"  as  the  author 
modestly  calls  it,  is  taken  from  the  Boston  Repertory7,  the 
leading  federal  print  of  New-England.  We  have  no  hesita- 
tion m  pronouncing  this  "  Sketch,"  take  it  together,  equal, 
at  least,  to  any  thing  we  have  on  record  from  the  pen  of  Ed- 
mund Burke,  whose  charming  manner  it  so  closely  resembles  ; 
nor  is  it  surpassed  by  the  celebrated  character  of  Chatham  by 
Oattan.  Yet  must  it  be  owned  that  it  is  not  uniformly  ex- 
cellent. We  mean  not  to  enter  into  criticism  in  detail,  butt 
in  our  opinion,  the  manner  in  which  allusion  is  made  to 
Cr£ece  and  Rome,  is  tame  and  beneath  the  rest  of  the 
piece.  Instead  of  saying  "  Such  a  patriot, the  best  Romans 
in  their  best  days  would  have  admitted  to  citizenship  and  the 
consulate  ;"  and  that  "  the  name  of  Hamilton  would  not 
have  dishonoured  Greece  in  the  age  of  Aristides,"  would 
it  not  have  been  much  nearer  the  truth,  and  more  like  the 
rest  of  the  sketch,  to  have  said,  that  had  either  Greece  or 
Home  ever  possessed  a  citizen  who  concentrated  in  himself 


(226) 

vast  talents,  such  disinterested  patriotism,  so  many 
private  virtues,  so  many  amiable  qualities,  and  who  had 
from  the  purest  motives,  rendered  his  country  such  invalua- 
ble services  as  Alexander  Hamilton,  it  would  have  added  a 
greater  lustre  to  the  fortunate  country  who  could  have  claim- 
ed the  honour  of  giving  birth  to  such  a  prodigy,  than  the 
annals  of  either  can  now  boast  of  ?  The  concluding  sen- 
tence is,  also,  in  our  judgment,  a  little  inconsistent  with 
what  has  preceded,  and  a  falling  off. 

THE  editor  of  that  paper  thus  refers  his  readers  to  this 
eminently  beautiful  picture — u  Reader,  do  you  wish  to  re- 
gale your  mind,  your  taste,  your  sensibility  ?  Then  turn  to 
the  first  page.  Are  you  curious  to  know  who  has  furnished 
you  such  a  repast  ?  He  whose  writings  have  long  given 
character,  as  they  have  given  intelligence,  to  New-Eng- 
land*." 

TROM   THE    BOSTON   REPERTORY. 

THE  following  Sketch  was  prepared,  immediately  after  the 
death  of  the  ever  to  be  lamented  HAMILTON,  and  was 
lately  read  to  a  select  company  of  friends,  at  whose  de- 
sire it  is  published. 

THERE  are  so  many  persons,  who,  from  various  causes, 
possess  only  a  superficial  knowledge  of  the  character  of 
eminent  men,  that  it  is  to  be  expected  the  extraordinary 
marks  of  grief  manifested  by  the  public,  on  the  death  of 
General  Hamilton,  will  to  some  appear  strange,  and  to 
others  excessive.  America,  they  may  say,  has  produced 
many  great  men ;  some  are  dead,  and  others  remain  alive. 
Why  then  should  we  mourn,  as  if  with  a  sense  of  desolation 
and  surprise,  for  a  loss,  that  by  the  lot  of  human  nature, 

9  Supposed  to  be  the  Honourable  Fisher  Ami*. 


(sar  ) 

"has  already  become  familiar,  and  why  mourn  so  much,  as 
if  all  was  lost,  when  we  have  so  many  great  men  left  ? 

BUT  although  General  Hamilton  has,  for  some  years, 
withdrawn  frOm  public  office  to  the  bar,  and  has  been,  in 
some  measure,  out  of  the  view  and  contemplation  of  his 
co  untrymen,  there  was  nevertheless  a  splendour  in  his  charac- 
ter that  could  not  be  contracted  within  the  ordinary  sphere 
cf  his  employments. 

IT  is  with  really  great  men,  as  with  great  literary  works,  the 
excellence  of  both  is  best  tested  by  the  extent  and  durable- 
ness  of  their  impression.  The  public  has  not  suddenly,  but 
after  an  experience  of  five-and-twenty  years,  taken  that 
impression  of  the  just  celebrity  of  Alexander  liamilton,  which 
nothing  but  his  extraordinary  intrinsic  merit  could  have 
made,  and  still  less  could  have  made  so  deep,  and  main- 
tained so  long.  In  this  case,  it  is  safe  and  correct  to  judge 
by  effects.  We  sometimes  calculate  the  height  of  a  moun- 
tain, by  measuring  the  length  of  its  shadow. 

IT  is  not  a  party,  for  party  distinctions,  to  the  honour  Of 
our  citizens,  be  it  said,  are  confounded  by  the  event ;  it  is 
a  nation  that  weeps  for  its  bereavement.  We  weep  as  the 
Romans  did  over  the  ashes  of  Germanicus.  It  is  a  thought- 
ful, foreboding  sorrow,  that  takes  possession  of  the  heart* 
and  sinks  it  with  no  counterfeited  heaviness. 

IT  is  here  proper,  and  not  invidious,  to  remark,  that  as 
the  emulation  excited  by  conducting  great  affairs,  common- 
ly trains  and  exhibits  great  talents,  it  is  seldom  the  case  that 
the  fairest  and  soundest  judgment  of  a  great  man's  merit,  is 
to  be  gained,  exclusively,  from  his  associates  in  counsel  or 
action.  Persons  of  conspicuous  merit  themselves  are,  not 
unfrequently,  bad  judges,  and  still  worse  witnesses  on  thi* 


(228  ) 

point:  often  rivals,  sometimes  enemies,  almost  always  un- 
just, and  still  oftener  envious  or  cold ;  the  opinions  they 
give  to  the  public,  as  well  as  those  they  privately  form  for 
themselves,  are,  of  course,  discoloured  with  the  hue  of 
their  prejudices  and  resentments.  c*^ 

BUT  the  body  of  the  people,  who  cannot  feel  a  spirit  of 
rivalship  towards  those  whom  they  see  elevated  by  nature 
and  education  so  far  above  their  heads,  are  more  equitable, 
and,  supposing  a  competent  time  and  opportunity  for  in- 
formation on  the  subject,  more  intelligent  judges.  Even 
party  rancour,  eager  to  maim  the  living,  scorns  to  strip  the 
slain.  The  most  hostile  passions  are  soothed  or  baffled  by 
the  fall  of  their  antagonist.  Then,  if  not  sooner,  the  very 
multitude  will  fairly  decide  on  character,  according  to  their 
experience  of  its  impression  ;  and  as  long  as  virtue,  not  un- 
frequently  for  a  time  obscured,  is  ever  respectable  when  dis- 
tinctly seen,  they  cannot  withhold,  and  they  will  not  stint 
their  admiration. 

IF  then  the  popular  estimation  is  ever  to  be  taken  for  the 
true  one,  the  uncommonly  profound  public  sorrow  for  the 
death  of  Alexander  Hamilton,  sufficiently  explains  and  vin- 
dicates itself.  He  had  not  made  himself  dear  to  the  pas- 
sions of  the  multitude,  by  condescending,  in  defiance  of  his 
honour  and  conscience,  to  become  their  instrument.  He  is  not 
lamented  because  a  skilful  flatterer  is  now  mute  for  ever. 
It  was  by  the  practice  of  no  art,  by  wearing  no  disguise,  it 
was  not  by  accident,  nor  by  the  levity  nor  profligacy  of  par- 
ty, but  in  despite  of  its  malignant  misrepresentation,  it  was 
by  bold  and  inflexible  adherence  to  truth,  by  loving  his  coun- 
try better  than  himself,  preferring  its  interest  to  its  favour, 
and  serving  it,  when  it  was  unwilling  and  unthankful,  in  a 
manner  that  no  other  person  could,  that  he  rose ;  and  the 
trttc  popularity,  the  homage  that  is  paid  to  virtue,  followed 
him.  It  was  not  in  the  power  of  party  or  envy  to  pull  him 


(  229  ) 

down,  but  he  rose,  as  if  some  force  of  attraction  drew  him 
to  the  skies.  He  rose,  and  the  very  prejudice  that  could 
not  reach,  was  at  length  almost  ready  to  adore  him. 

IT  is  indeed  no  imagined  wound  that  inflicts  so  keen  an 
anguish.  Since  the  news  of  his  death,  the  novel  and  strange 
events  of  Europe  have  succeeded  each  other  unregarded, 
the  nation  has  been  enchained  to  its  subject,  and  broods 
over  its  grief,  which  is  more  deep  than  eloquent  ;  which, 
though  dumb,  can  make  itself  felt  without  utterance,  and 
which  does  not  merely  pass,  but,  like  an  electrical  shock,  at 
the  same  instant  smites  and  astonishes,  as  it  passes  from 
Georgia  to  Newhampshire. 

THERE  is  a  kind  of  force  put  upon  our  thoughts  by  this 
disaster  that  detains  and  rivets  them  to  a  closer  contempla* 
tion  of  those  resplendent  virtues  that  are  now  lost,  except  to 
memory,  and  there  they  will  dwell  for  ever. 


writer  would  deserve  the  fame  of  a  public  benefac- 
tor, who  could  exhibit  the  character  of  Hamilton  with  the 
truth  and  force  that  all  who  intimately  knew  him  conceived 
it  ;  his  example  would  then  take  the  same  ascendant  as  his 
talents.  The  portrait  alone,  however  exquisitely  finished, 
could  not  inspire  genius  where  it  is  not  j  but  if  the  world 
should  again  have  possession  of  so  rare  a  gift,  it  might 
awaken  it  where  it  sleeps,  as  by  a  spark  from  heavenrs  own 
altar  >  for,  surely,  if  there  is  any  thing  like  divinity  in  man, 
it  is  in  his  admiration  of  virtue. 

BUT  who  alive  can  exhibit  this  portrait  ?  If  our  age,  on 
that  supposition  more  fruitful  than  any  other,  had  produced 
two  Hamiltons,  one  of  them  might  then  have  depicted  the 
other.  To  delineate  genius  one  must  feel  its  power.  Ha- 
milton, and  he  alone,  with  all  its  inspiration,  could  have 


(  230  ) 

transfused  its  whole  fervid  soul  into  the  picture,  and  swell- 
ed its  lineaments  into  life.  The  writer's  mind,  expanding 
with  his  own  enthusiasm,  and  glowing  with  kindred  fires, 
would  then  have  stretched  to  the  dimensions  of  his  subject. 

SUCH  is  the  infirmity  of  human  nature,  it  is  very  difficult 
for  a  man,  who  is  greatly  the  superior  of  his  associates,  to 
preserve  their  friendship  without  abatement.  Yet  though 
Hamilton  could  not  possibly  conceal  his  superiority,  he  was 
so  little  inclined  to  display  it,  he  was  so  much  at  ease  in  its 
possession,  that  no  jealousy  or  envy  chilled  his  bosom  when 
his  friends  obtained  praise  :  he  was  indeed,  so  entirely  the 
friend  of  his  friends,  so  magnanimous,  so  superior,  or  more 
properly,  so  insensible  to  all  exclusive  selfishness  of  spirit, 
so  frank,  so  ardent,  yet  so  little  overbearing,  so  much  trust- 
ed, admired,  beloved,  almost  adored,  that  his  power  over 
their  affections  was  entire  and  lasted  through  his  life.  We 
do  not  believe  that  he  left  any  worthy  man  his  foe  who  had 
ever  been  his  friend.  Men  of  the  most  elevated  minds  have 
not  always  the  readiest  discernment  of  character.  Perhaps 
he  was  sometimes  too  sudden  and  too  lavish  in  bestowing  his 
confidence :  his  manly  spirit,  ^isj^nmg^artifice,  suspect- 
ed none ;  but  while  the  power^of  his  friends  over  him  seem- 
ed_to  have  no  limits,  and  really  had  none,  in  respect  to  those 
things  which  were  of  a  nature  to  be  yielded^  jio  maiVJiot 
the  Roman  Cafo  Himself,  wasjnore  inflexible  on  every  point 
that  touched,  or  only  seemed  tojpjich^  integrity  andJionour, 
With  him,  it  was  not  enough  to  be  unsuspected  ;  his  bosom 
would  have  glowed  like  a  furnace  at  its  own  whispers  of  re- 
proach. Mere  purity  would  have  seemed  to  him  below 
praise  ;  and  such  were  his  habits  and  such  his  nature,  that 
the  pecuniary  temptations,  which  many  others  can,  only  with 
great  exertion  and  self-denial,  resist,  had  no  attractions  for 
him. 


(231) 

He  was  very  far  from  obstinate.  Yet  as  his  friends 
assailed  his  opinions  with  less  profound  thought  than  he  had 
devoted  to  them,  they  were  seldom  shaken  by  discussion. 
He  defended  them,  however,  with  as  much  mildness  as 
force,  and  evinced  that,  if  he  did  not  yield,  it  was  not  for 
want  of  gentleness  or  modesty. 

THE  tears  that  flow  on  this  fond  recital  will  never  dry  up. 
My  heart,  penetrated  with  the  remembrance  of  the  man, 
grows  liquid  as  I  write,  and  I  could  pour  it  out  like  water. 
I  could  weep  too  for  my  country,  which,  mournful  as  it  is, 
does  not  know  the  half  of  its  loss.  It  deeply  laments,  when 
it  turns  its  eyes  back,  and  sees  what  Hamilton  was  ;  but  my 
soul  stiffens  with  despair  when  I  think  what  Hamilton  -would 
have  been. 

His  social  affections,  and  his  private  virtues,  are  not, 
however,  so  properly  the  object  of  public  attention,  as  the 
conspicuous  and  commanding  qualities  that  gave  him  his 
fame  and  influence  in  the  world.  It  is  not  as  Apollo,  en- 
chanting the  shepherds  with  his  lyre;  it  is  as  Hercules, 
treacherously  slain,  in  the  midst  of  his  unfinished  labours, 
leaving  the  world  overrun  with  monsters,  that  we  most 
deeply  deplore  him. 

His  early  life  we  pass  over....Though  his  heroic  spirit 
in  the  army  has  furnished  a  theme  that  is  dear  to  patriot- 
ism, and  will  be  sacred  to  glory, 

IN  all  the  different  stations  in  which  a  life  of  active  use- 
fulness has  placed  him,  we  find  him  not  more  remarkably 
distinguished  by  the  extent,  than  by  the  variety  and  versa- 
tility of  his  talents.  In  every  place,  he  made  it  apparent, 
that  no  other  man  could  have  filled  it  so  well,  and,  in  times 

of  critical  importance,  in  which  alone  he  desired  employ- 

2  H 


(  232  ) 

merit,  his  services  were  justly  deemed  indispensable.  As 
Secretary  of  the  Treasury,  his  was  the  powerful  spirit  that 
presided  over  the  Chaos — 

Confusion  heard  his  voice,  and  wild  uproar 
Stood  ruled 

INDEED,  in  organizing  the  Federal  Government  in  1789, 
every  man  of  either  sense  or  candour  will  allow,  the  diffi- 
culty seemed  greater  than  the  first  rate  abilities  could  sur- 
mount. The  event  has  shown  that  his  abilities  were  greater 
than  those  difficulties.  He  surmounted  them,  and  Wash- 
ington's administration  was  the  most  wise  and  beneficent, 
the  most  prosperous,  and  ought  to  be  the  most  popular, 
that  ever  \Vas  intrusted  with  the  affairs  of  a  nation.  Great 
as  was  Washington's  merit,  much  of  it  in  plan,  much  in  ex- 
ecution, will  of  course  devolve  upon  his  minister. 

As  a  Lawyer,  m's  comprehensive  genius  reached  the 
principles  of  his  profession ;  he  compassed  its  extent,  he 
fathomed  its  profound,  perhaps  even  more  familiarly  and 
easily,  than  the  ordinary  rules  of  its  practice.  With  most 
men,  law  is  a  trade  ;  with  him  it  was  a  science. 

As  a  Statesman,  he  was  not  more  distinguished  by  the 
great  extent  of  his  views,  than  by  the  caution  with  which  he 
provided  against  impediments,  and  the  watchfulness  of  his 
care,  over  right  and  the  liberty  of  the  subject.  In  none  of 
the  many  revenue  bills  which  he  framed,  though  Com- 
mittees reported  them,  is  there  to  be  found  a  single  clause 
that  savours  of  despotic  power ;  not  one  that  the  sagest 
champions  of  law  and  liberty  would,  on  that  ground,  hesL 
tats  to  approve  and  adopt. 

IT  is  rare  that  a  man  who  owes  so  much  to  nature  de- 
scends to  seek  more  from  industry.  But  he  seemed  to  de^ 


(  233  ) 

pend  on  industry,  as  if  nature  had  done  nothing  for  him. 
His  habits  of  investigation  were  very  remarkable  ;  his  mind 
seemed  to  cling  to  his  subject,  till  he  had  exhausted  it. 
Hence  the  uncommon  superiority  of  his  reasoning  powers,  a 
superiority  that  seemed  to  be  augmented  from  every  source, 
and  to  be  fortified  by  every  auxiliary ;  learning,  taste,  wit, 
imagination,  and  eloquence.  These  were  embellished  and 
enforced  by  his  temper  and  manners,  by  his  fame  and  his 
virtues.  It  is  difficult,  in  the  midst  of  such  various  excel- 
lence, to  say  in  what  particular  the  effect  of  his  greatness 
was  most  manifest.  No  man  more  promptly  discerned  truth, 
no  man  more  clearly  displayed  it ;  it  was  not  merely  made 
visible,  it  seemed  to  come  bright  with  illumination  from  his 
lips.  But  prompt  and  clear  as  he  was,  fervid  as  Demost- 
henes, like  Cicero,  full  of  resource,  he  was  not  less  re- 
markable for  the  copiousness  and  completeness  of  his  argu- 
ment, that  left  little  for  cavil,  and  nothing  for  doubt. 
Some  men  take  their  strongest  argument  as  a  weapon,  and 
use  no  other.  But  he  left  nothing  to  be  inquired  for  more — 
nothing  to  be  answered.  He  not  only  disarmed  his  adver- 
saries of  their  pretexts  and  objections,  but  he  stripped  them 
of  all  excuse  for  having  urged  them :  he  confounded  and 
subdued  as  well  as  convinced.  He  indemnified  them,  how- 
ever, by  making  his  discussion  a  complete  map  of  his  sub- 
ject, so  that  his  opponents  might  indeed  feel  ashamed  of  their 
mistakes,  but  they  could  not  repeat  them.  In  fact,  it  was 
no  common  effort,  that  could  preserve  a  really  able  antago- 
nist from  becoming  his  convert.  For,  the  truth,  which  his 
researches  so  distinctly  presented  to  the  understanding  of 
others,  was  rendered  almost  irresistibly  commanding  and 
impressive,  by  the  love  and  reverence  which,  it  was  ever  ap- 
parent,  he  profoundly  cherished  for  it  in  his  own.  While 
patriotism  glowed  in  his  heart,  wisdom  blended,  in  his 
speech,  her  authority  with  her  charms. 


(234) 

SUCH  also  is  the  character  of  his  writings.  Judiciously 
collected,  they  will  be  a  public  treasure. 

No  man  ever  more  disdained  duplicity,  or  carried  frank' 
ness  further  than  he.  This  gave  to  his  political  opponents 
Some  temporary  advantages  -,  and  currency  to  some  popular 
prejudices,  which  he  would  have  lived  down,  if  his  death 
had  not  prematurely  dispelled  them.  He  knew  that  factions 
have  ever  in  the  end  prevailed  in  free  States,  and  as  he  saw 
no  security,  and  who  living  can  see  any  adequate,  against 
the  destruction  of  that  liberty  which  he  loved,  and  for  which 
he  was  ever  ready  to  devote  his  life,  he  spoke  at  all  times 
according  to  his  anxious  forebodings,  and  his  enemies  inter- 
preted all  that  he  said  according  to  the  supposed  interest  of 
their  party. 

BUT  he  ever  extorted  confidence  even  when  he  most  pro- 
voked opposition.  It  was  impossible  to  deny  that  he  was  a 
patriot — and  such  a  patriot,  seeking  neither  popularity  nor 
office,  without  artifice,  without  meanness,  the  best  Romans 
in  their  best  days  would  have  admitted  to  citizenship,  and  to 
the  Consulate.  Virtue  so  rare,  so  pure,  so  bold,  by  its  very 
purity  and  excellence,  inspired  suspicion,  as  a  prodigy.  His 
enemies  judged  of  him  by  themselves.  So  splendid  and  ar- 
duous were  his  services,  they  could  not  find  it  in  their  hearts 
to  believe  that  they  were  disinterested. 

UNPARALLELED  as  they  were,  they  were  nevertheless  no 
otherwise  requited  than  by  the  applause  of  ail  good  men,  and 
by  his  own  enjoyment  of  the  spectacle  of  that  national  prospe- 
rity and  consideration,  which  was  the  effect  of  them.  After 
facing  calumny  and  triumphantly  sui  mounting  an  unrelent- 
ing persecution,  he  retired  from  office  with  clean,  though 
empty  hands,  as  rich  as  reputation  and  an  unblemished  in- 
teirritv  could  make  him. 


(235  ) 

SOME  have  plausibly,  though  erroneously,  inferred  from 
the  great  extent  of  his  abilities,  that  his  ambition  was  inordi- 
nate. This  is  a  mistake.  Such  men  as  have  a  painful  con- 
sciousness that  their  stations  happen  to  be  far  more  exalted 
than  their  talents,  are  generally  the  most  ambitious.  Hamil* 
ton7~on  the  contrary,  though  he  had  many  competitors,  had 
no  rivals  ;  for  he  did  not  thirst  for  power,  nor  would  he,  as 
it  was  well  known,  descend  to  office.  Of  course  he  suffered 
no  pain  from  envy  when  bad  men  rose,  though  he  felt  anx- 
iety for  the  public.  He  was  perfectly  content  and  at  ease  in 
private  life.  Of  what  was  he  ambitious  ?  not  of  wealth. 
No  man  held  it  cheaper.  Was  it  of  popularity  ?  That  weed 
of  the  dunghill,  he  knew,  when  rankest,  was  nearest  to  with- 
ering. There  is  no  doubt,  that,  being  conscious  of  his  pow- 
ers, he  desired  glory,  which  to  most  men  is  too  inaccessible 
to  be  an  object  of  desire.  But  feeling  his  own  force,  and 
that  he  was  tall  enough  to  reach  the  top  of  Pindus  or  of  He- 
licon, he  longed  to  deck  his  brow  with  the  wreath  of  immor- 
tality. A  vulgar  ambition  could  as  little  comprehend  as  sa- 
tisfy his  views ;  he  thirsted  only  for  that  fame  that  virtue 
would  not  blush  to  confer,  nor  time  to  convey  to  the  end  of 
his  course. 

THE  only  ordinary  distinction  to  which  we  confess  he  did 
aspire  was  military,  and  for  tha^  in  the  event  of  a  foreign 
war,  he  would  have  been  solicitous.  He  undoubtedly  dis- 
covered the  predominance  of  a  soldier's  feelings  ;  and  all  that 
is  honour,  in  the  character  of  a  soldier,  was  at  home  in  his 
heart.  His  early  education  was  in  the  camp  ;  there  the  first 
fervours  of  his  genius  were  poured  forth,  and  his  earliest  and 
most  cordial  friendships  formed.  There  he  became  ena- 
moured of  glory,  and  was  admitted  to  its  embrace. 

THOSE  who  knew  hijn  best,  and  especially  in  the  army, 


(236) 

will  believe  that  if  occasion  had  called  him  forth,  he  was  qua-* 
lifted  beyond  any  man  of  the  age,  to  display  the  talents  of  ^ 
great  General. 

IT  may  be  very  long  before  our  country  will  want  such 
military  talents.  It  will  probably  be  much  longer  before  it 
will  again  possess  them. 

ALAS  !  the  great  man,  who  was  at  all  times  so  much  the 
ornament  of  our  country,  and  so  exclusively  fitted  in  its  ex- 
tremity to  be  its  champion,  is  withdrawn  to  a  purer  and  more 
tranquil  region. 

WE  are  left  to  endless  labours  and  unavailing  regrets. 

Such  honours  Ilion  to  her  hero  paid, 

And  peaceful  slept  the  mighty  Hector's  shade,  ~* 

Our  Troy  has  lost  her  Hector. 

THE  most  substantial  glory  of  a  country  is  in  its  virtuous 
great  men.  Its  prosperity  will  depend  on  its  docility  to 
learn  from  their  example.  That  nation  is  fated  to  ignominy 
and  servitude,  for  which  such  men  have  lived  in  vain.  Pow- 
er may  be  seized  by  a  nation  that  is  yet  barbarous,  and 
wealth  may  be  enjoyed  by  one  that  it  finds,  or  renders  sor- 
did ;  the  one  is  the  gift  and  the  sport  of  accident,  and  the 
other  is  the  sport  of  power.  Both  are  mutable,  and  have 
passed  away  without  leaving  behind  them  any  other  memo- 
morial  than  ruins  that  offend  taste,  and  traditions  that  baffle 
conjecture.  But  the  glory  of  Greece  is  imperishable,  or  will 
last  as  long  as  learning  itself,  which  is  its  monument.  It 
strikes  an  everlasting  root,  and  bears  perennial  blossoms  on 
its  grave.  The  name  of  Hamilton  would  not  have  disho- 
noured Greece  in  the  age  of  Aristides.  May  Heaven,  the 
guardian  of  our  liberty,  grant,  that  our  country  may  be 
fruitful  of  Hamiltocs  and  faithful  to  their  glory. 


(237) 


TRIBUTE  OF  RESPECT* 

AT  a  general  meeting  of  the  inhabitants  of  GENEVA,  at 
Powell's  Hotel,  in  the  evening  of  the  2d  inst.  agreeably  to 
notice,  for  the  purpose  of  uniting  with  their  fellow-citizens 
at  large,  in  expressing  their  unfeigned  sorrow  and  regret,  at 
the  untimely  death  of  General  Alexander  Hamilton,  and  the 
great  loss  this  country  has  sustained  in  the  death  of  that  in- 
valuable man — 

DANIEL  W.  LEWIS,  Esquire, 

was  called  to  the  chair — 

Who,    in  a  solemn    and  impressive  manner,  opened   the 
meeting;    and,  in   a  few  observations,    recapitulated   the 
Talents,  Patriotism,  and  Virtues,  of  the  deceased,  when  the 
following  resolutions  were  unanimously  adopted. 

THAT  this  Meeting  feel  the  most  sensible  grief  at  the 
death  of  General  Hamilton,  and  with  their  fellow -citizens 
throughout  the  union,  deplore  and  lament  the  event,  as  a 
great  national  loss. 

THAT  this  Meeting  are  impressed  with  a  just  sense  of 
the  merit  attached  to  the  character  of  the  deceased,  acquir- 
ed by  his  distinguished  and  highly  honourable  services  ren- 
dered his  country  as  a  Soldier....his  pre-eminent  display  of 
talents  and  eloquence  as  a  Statesman  and  Lawyer... .and  his 
exalted  principles  of  honour  and  integrity,  as  a  private  Citi- 
zen, do  agree,(  as  a  tribute  of  respect  due  to  his  memory, 
to  wear  a  Crape  on  the  left  arm,  for  thirty  days....And,  as 
a  further  tribute  of  respect,  That  Mr.  Gordon,  Mr.  Weis- 
ner,  and  Mr.  Heslop,  be  appointed  a  committee  on  behalf 
of  this  Meeting,  to  wait  on  the  Rev.  Mr.  Chapman,  and 
request  the  favour  of  him  to  preach  a  Sermon  to-morrow 
afternoon  adapted  to  the  occasion  ;  and  the  inhabitants  of 


(  238  ) 

the  Village  are  requested  to  meet  at  4  o'clock  in  the  after- 
noon, to  form  a  solemn  procession  to  the  Meeting-House. 
Wm.  H.  CUYLER,  Secretary. 

AGREEABLY  to  the  above  arrangements,  the  inhabitants 
of  the  Village  met,  and  formed  a  procession  to  the  house 
of  worship,  when  the  Rev.  Mr.  Chapman  delivered  a  Ser- 
mon on  the  above  occasion,  from  Hosea,  Chap.  4th,  part 
of  verse  3d.~."  Therefore  shall  the  land  mourn? 


END  OF  NO,  v. 


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